


Dungeon Dragon

by Starkling



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Ending, EWE, F/F, F/M, Good Slytherins, M/M, Multi POV, Ongoing War, Order of the Phoenix (Harry Potter), Smut, Veela Draco Malfoy, Veela Mates, badass Hermione, dramione - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-03
Updated: 2018-11-20
Packaged: 2018-11-22 16:16:51
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 139
Words: 111,725
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11383812
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Starkling/pseuds/Starkling
Summary: They had been stumbling around blindly for too long, they should have made it to the rendezvous by now, Hermione thought nervously before she took out her wand, placing it on her palm."Point me." She whispered.When her wand spun in a circle, pointing off to her far right, she got miffed. They'd gone too far West. Gesturing for Zacharias to follow over her shoulder, she crept quietly though the woods. Keeping her eyes and ears peeled for any sign of humans or wildlife."Granger! Look out!"Hermione snapped her head in Zacharias's direction just in time to see a look of horror cross his face, before a seemingly grey blur came crashing straight for her. It grabbed a hold of her waist and Hermione screamed bloody murder, before promptly being knocked unconscious by a jet of red light, hitting her square in the chest.Chapters are short because we’re constantly jumping POVs, some are longer than others.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> THANK YOU TO JK ROWLING FOR LENDING ME HER CHARACTERS.  
> Hi! Welcome to my fanfiction, it's my first attempt so constructive criticism is appreciated. Take note of 'constructive.' I haven't written anything on here before but I have read a lot of reviews and some of those trolls belong under a bridge. So without further ado, please be gentle and enjoy!
> 
> PS: no matter if you started reading this a while in please don’t be afraid to review on old chapters, I appreciate all feedback. x

**DRACO**

_****Two months ago..._ **  
**

The enchanted shackles around his wrists had rubbed any flesh raw, open wounds now littered his skin and his body would occasionally shudder from lingering aftershocks of regular torture and deprivation. He sat with his eyes closed, leaning against the stone wall of his cell, breathing slowly, seemingly calm despite his obvious pain.

When the door at the top of the stairs of the blackened room outside his cell rattled loudly, he perked his ears but held his position. Waiting for what would happen this time.

Draco heard raucous laughter and the obvious shouts of a young woman in distress and felt the blood slowly freeze in his veins. This wouldn't mean anything good.

Three masked men in Black Death Eater robes were hauling a young girl down the stairs, she was completely bound and unable to escape, but it didn't stop her from trying. She fought furiously, struggling for all she was worth. Draco felt a Drop of pity for her. That fight wouldn't be long for this world.

He heard the laughing men throw the girl into the cell next to his, jeering and mocking all the while. They locked her in and started back up the stairs, hooting and hollering.

Draco watched silently from his place on the floor as she squirmed around, trying to free herself of her bindings. Her flailing had put her in a rare ray of light and he caught sight of her face. Draco felt his blood run cold again, he knew this one. She was Hannah Abbott. A Hufflepuff from his year at school.

"I wouldn't bother with that if I were you."

Her eyes snapped up, it was all the confirmation he needed. She had a sickly pallor and a rugged look about her but those cloudy blue eyes and long blonde locks were very much familiar.

" _Malfoy_?"

He inclined his head.

"What are you _doing_ down here? I thought you were dead, no ones seen you or your mother since the final battle."

Draco snickered. _Final battle_. There was nothing final about it. The war was still waging as strong as ever.

"So did everyone else. That was the point. Unfortunately, my own tragic circumstances left me afflicted with a bleeding heart. Thus, here I am." He raised his arms up around his shoulders in mock appreciation of his surroundings.

"I don't understand."

"You don't need to." He looked up sharply when he heard laughter penetrating the dingy cells.

Looking back at Hannah he saw her observing him curiously.

"Abbott, I need you to listen to me carefully." She blinked.

"Cry."

She looked baffled.

"When they come for you tonight, and they _will_ come, you need to cry. Don't fight them, just give them what they want. If you don't, I promise you, it will be much worse. Don't try and be noble, they thrive off of shit like that, the ones that are harder to break."

Draco gave Hannah a penetrating stare, making her flinch, he whispered, "Make them think they've won, that they've got you beat. Your life might depend on it."

Hannah slumped, tears pooling in her eyes, speaking so softly he almost didn't hear her, "They're going to rape me aren't they, Malfoy?"

"Yes."

Hannah whimpered.

"Toughen up Abbott, don't let it break you. You _can_ survive this."

 The sun had been down for a few hours now and there were voices getting louder and louder, coming from the stairs.

Draco looked over at a shaking Hannah. "Brace yourself, Abbott."

She held his stare before taking a deep breathe and closing her eyes in acceptance of her inevitable fate.

For the next few hours all Draco could process was the wailing screams rocketing around the stone walls in the darkened cells as they tormented the familiar blonde girl just feet from him.

He kept his eyes closed, he'd accepted that he wouldn't be able to drown out her noises the same way as he had others they'd brought down here. It was a pity they hadn't done away with him already. _That was just a dream though,_ he thought bitterly. They'd keep him alive until his heart finally sputtered its last beat.

When they'd abused Hannah to the point of unconsciousness, they decided she was no longer entertaining and voted to take Draco for a whirl. It had been a few days since anyone had paid him a visit.

Draco tried to blank out as much of the pain as he could, slipping into limbo easily after so much time and practise. They'd sliced and beaten and crucioed him, then stumbled up the stairs in a drunken stupor, leaving him alone to pass out on the floor.


	2. Chapter 2

**DRACO**

Hannah woke from the sounds of Draco's screams. Sitting up, she dragged herself, whimpering until she reached the bars.

"Malfoy?" She croaked.

"Malfoy?"

Draco coughed, blood pooling at the corners of his lips. Hannah reached out, grabbing at his shirt and pulling with all her strength until she'd dragged him closer.

Hannah ripped a corner of her jumper and wiped the blood away gently. He was panting hard. Trying return to reality.

Draco blinked, black was creeping at the edges of his vision and he promptly passed out.

When he came to there was light shining from the windows of the cells. He noticed Hannah, slumped up against the bars, she looked a mess, covered in fresh bruises and cuts, her hair was matted and filthy, dried tear tracks lining her milky cheeks.

Draco sighed, she had taken his advice. Luckily they'd gotten bored of her quickly. In telling Hannah to roll over and take it he'd put himself in harms way. He would have been overlooked had he ignored her and let her fight tooth and nail. But in the process she probably would've been killed. Looking at her beaten form Draco was still humane enough that he couldn't stand by and let a girl he knew, be snuffed out so pointlessly. It seemed despite months of torture he still couldn't completely shed his compassion.

When Hannah stirred he lifted his self-filling cup, slipping it through the bars and nudging her. "Drink." She blinked, "You need it more than I do."

Hannah picked up the cup with trembling hands, lifting it to her mouth and taking the smallest sip of water.

"…We're going to die in here aren't we, Malfoy?" She whispered.

"Most definitely."

Hannah sighed, placing the cup down carefully before facing Draco head on, "We can't just _die_."

"I think you'll find that we most certainly _can_ , Abbott."

She wrapped her delicate hands around the bars, "We have to do something Malfoy, I refuse to believe that there's nothing we can do to save ourselves."

"While your bubbly Hufflepuff demeanour is a refreshing change of pace, I regret to inform you that even if we could do something, we are in Hogwarts. There are alarms and booby traps all over the castle. We'd need a wand to even stand a chance."

Hannah's eyes hardened. "Then we'll get a wand."

Draco watched Hannah with a sparked interest. There was no way he'd be able to get a wand. He was chained to the walls by his wrists with heavy, magic stunting cuffs. A precaution after his last failed attempt. But _she_ could. She was no longer restrained, free to move about her cell as she pleased. A plan began formulating in Draco's mind, a smile slowly making its way across his cracked lips.

"I think, Abbott, that there's hope for you yet."

Hannah blinked owlishly and Draco proceeded to tell her his plans. Hannah's arrival in the dungeons had given them both a fighting chance.

That night when the Death Eaters stumbled down the stairs, Hannah took a steadying breath. They'd discussed the plan in detail and Hannah knew the part she had to play. In order to trick their captors she had to make them believe that she'd developed a back bone.

She put up a good fight, letting them herd her towards the bars against Draco's cell. Biting and scratching and kicking as they jeered.

They'd discussed it earlier, Hannah was to put on a show for the first couple. There was one man he'd told her, who got off on watching. He would stand in the corner, drinking from a bottomless flask while his friends had their fun. After they'd had their fill and their victim was left a broken mess on the floor, only then would he participate. He enjoyed violating broken things, Draco told her. Defiling something hopeless and full of despair got him off more than the act itself ever did.

When her tormentor climbed on top of her, wreaking of firewhiskey, friends cheering him on, Hannah let forth a sudden burst of energy, kicking and writhing and scratching.

Hannah waited for her moment, he was focused on pinning her hips and pushing himself inside of her, eyes planted on the place where their bodies were joined. Keeping up her act of defiance, Hannah crept her hand around, careful not to jostle his clothes too much. She slipped her hand inside his robes pocket, wrapping her fingers around the thin wooden shaft she found there before tucking it against her forearm and raising it above her head to push through the bars.

She kicked out, shifting their position so that none would notice when Draco crept forward, reaching out with his chained arms to pick up the wand Hannah had nudged through the bars.

Grasping ahold of the wand, Draco felt a magical rush of power suffuse his body. A familiar pulse of energy whooshing through his being and something else, licking through his veins like fire, igniting a foreign magical component he'd have to examine at a later time. Quietly as possible, Draco removed the charms on his chains, drawing in a breath when his wrists were exposed to the air for the first time in over six months.

Casting several concealment charms, Draco rose up, creeping across to the door of his cell. Looking over, the Death Eaters attention was still firmly planted on Hannah, who was giving a terrifying performance.

Casting a silent  _Alohomora_ , Draco tutted, _idiots_. They were over confident, especially seeing as he'd already escaped his cage once before.

Slipping out quietly, Draco crept up on their jailers, casting a non verbal _imperio_ on the one closest to him. He watched as the spell took effect the mans spine stiffened.

 _Kill them,_ Draco whispered in his mind.

A second later the man in question began shooting off the killing curse towards his fellows in succession who were too drunk to catch on fast enough. Falling limply to the floor until it was only he and Draco with the man still intent on violating the young Hufflepuff. Working fast, he took out his imperiused puppet first before facing the degenerate gyrating on the floor.

Draco marched up behind him and raised his wand, casting the killing curse with flat, empty eyes, watching dispassionately as the last man slumped on top of Hannah.

Draco pulled the dead man off of her with a sneer, reaching forward to grasp Hannah's hand, pulling her upright. He cast several healing charms on her, time was of the essence and he needed her to be able to move.

Hannah grasped Draco's forearm, swaying. He squeezed her, steel eyes flashing to her cloudy blues, "Time to move Abbott, we have a limited window here, if we can get out of the castle undetected we'll have a chance. There's a passageway leading to the edge of the forbidden forest in the potion masters quarters. We just need to make it."

Hannah looked into Draco's eyes, searching his features before looking down, the dark mark was still etched into his forearm like a brand, she traced over it lightly before covering it with her palm, grasping his arm tightly and looking into his eyes, "Let's go."

Draco nodded, pulling her behind him and keeping her close to his back. Hannah tugged him to a stop before they left, picking up the dead wizards wands. Nodding his approval, they crept through the halls, the occasional distant voice pricking their ears and hurrying their steps. They came across a painting of a black serpent, curled into a pile, yellow eyes squinting out at them.

" _Salazar_."

The snake flickered its tongue and the painting swung open, a black stoned, dimly lit office covered in papers and potion supplies lay in front of them.

Draco could feel Hannah's pulse thumping beneath his palm. They were so close yet so far.

Hannah shuffled closely behind her companion, eyes flickering around the room looking for any potential threats.

They made it to the far side of the office where a bookshelf sat. Standing in front of it, Draco furrowed his brow, eyes flickering over the tomes before he reached out and carefully pulled on a book at around eye level.

The bookshelf creaked as it slid open to reveal a narrow, hidden passage, round stones bricking up the walls and floors, small wall sconces lighting the way.

"Time to go." Draco stepped forward, pulling the skittish Hufflepuff behind him.

They had been walking for about ten minutes when they heard it. Alarm bells were blaring loudly throughout the castle, waking anyone still sleeping.

Draco sped up, pulling Hannah along without a backward glance. Minutes later they came across an opening. Draco stopped at the lip of the entrance, looking around with sharp eyes before pulling Hannah out after him.

They made a mad dash for the forest, needing the cover of the trees. Adrenaline spiked their veins as they pumped their legs as hard and as fast as they could. Suddenly Draco skidded to a halt, pulling Hannah down next to him and ducking behind a fallen tree.

Draco peeked over the log to see two Dementors, floating in their general direction. Looking around he saw several small white stones on the ground near Hannah's feet, levitating them next to his head, Draco sent them one at a time in a volley. Hearing the noise, the Dementors began to float off in the opposite direction.

Waiting until they'd disappeared from sight, Draco pulled Hannah to her feet again and restarted their sprint for life.

They were both breathing hard when Draco slowed them to a stop. Huffing, sweat dripping into their eyes. They could hear people searching for them in the distance. They'd obviously made the leap that they had run to the forest for cover.

Looking around, breathing through his nose, Draco swung back to face Hannah, "I can't guarantee we'll both get out of here alive." she froze, "But  _if_ it comes to it, you need to get out of here." Draco pulled a small silver ring off of his pinky finger, "This is a portkey, it will take you to safety, all you have to do is find a Fairy Circle." Hannah looked puzzled, Draco explained hurriedly, "It's a natural cropping of trees or rocks, or plants, formed in a perfect circle. They're found in forests like these, basically they're like a magical dead zone. They're protected against any magic that isn't happening _within_ the circle. Find the circle, use the portkey. My people will help you from there." Draco put the ring in her hand and wrapped her fingers around it, pulling her onward.

Hannah was beginning to panic, there was no way she'd make it out of here by herself. She'd never even _been_ in the forbidden forest before, she would get eaten before she ever found a fairy circle on her own.

It was about half an hour later when Draco spotted it. No more than a hundred feet up ahead, the circle glowed with natural magic.

Before they could make a move, there were red lights flashing over their shoulders, a dozen snatchers were running at them now, just a couple of hundred yards away, firing off stunning spells left and right.

Swinging around, Draco pumped his legs, pushing them on, they were almost there when he suddenly collapsed, screaming in agony.

Hannah looked around panicked, they were too close and she wouldn't make it if she tried to carry Malfoy herself, without thought she held out her wand and screamed, " _BOMBARDA_!"

The explosion threw the closest Death Eaters back, grasping ahold of Draco's arm as he continued screaming, Hannah dragged him, adrenaline pushing her passed her physical limits. They'd just breached the trees of the circle when they were fell upon.

Hannah gripped Draco tight, looking down at the ring in her hand and whispering, " _Portus_."

They were being sucked away just as reaching hands had entered her line of vision.

 


	3. Chapter 3

**HANNAH**

  
Draco and Hannah landed with a hard smack into the wet ground. Sweat drenched and shaking, Draco was slumped in the dirt unconscious next to her. She slapped his face gently, whispering, "Malfoy," slap, " _Malfoy_."

When he remained dead to the world, Hannah pulled herself onto shaking legs, levitating Draco, she looked around and for the first time noticed the huge palace type structure in the distance passed the trees.

Hannah limped forward, floating Draco behind her, the place was an enormous Grecian structure of solid stone. Surrounded by a wall lined with life like statues of woodland creatures, the pathway leading to what she assumed was the front door seemed a million miles away. When she finally made it up the trailing path to what she assumed was the front door, she grabbed ahold of the enormous brass knocker, banging loudly before falling exhausted to the ground and promptly passing out. The heavy thump of Draco's body falling to the ground beside her was the last thing she heard before darkness took her.

  
When Hannah came to she was lying in a canopied bed, soft white sheets in an open, light stone room that reflected the suns rays.

Looking down she noticed someone had bathed and dressed her. She was dressed modestly in a loose fitting white dressing gown with thick straps. Her hair had been washed and brushed out as it lay in healthy looking ringlets over her shoulders. Flicking her eyes around the room she came face to face with a powdery blue house elf with lilac eyes, wearing a silky grey pillowcase, staring up at her.

"Miss is awake! Miss must drink some tea," the elf snapped its fingers and a tray with all the necessities popped into existence, pouring out tea for her. "Miss is wanting sugar or milk?" The elf squeaked.

Hannah fumbled, "Oh, um, one sugar would be lovely. Thank you." The elf nodded, huge ears flopping about its head.

"I must go fetch the Missus, she's is wanting to speak to young Miss."

With that the elf blinked out of sight and Hannah felt herself grow nervous. She examined the room, looking for any ideas about where she might be. It couldn't be Malfoy manor surely, there would no way she'd be treated with such care in that place. A friends then, although, which friend exactly was leaving her with a heavy pit in her stomach.

  
Just then the heavy oak door to her room swung wide and in walked who she assumed to be, Narcissa Malfoy herself. Regal as ever, Narcissa Malfoy carried herself with a confident, noble dignity that even Hannah envied. Her white blonde hair coifed in a perfect array of styled curls, and her piercing blue eyes stood in stark contrast, though her face seemed void of its usual sneer. Her midnight blue robes gave her skin a milky pallor. Narcissa Malfoy made a striking and intimidating figure.

Summoning an armchair with her wand, Narcissa sat down delicately before addressing Hannah, "I assume I have you to thank you for my sons safe return?"

Hannah opened her mouth but found that words escaped her, she slowly nodded her head instead.

Narcissa eyed her with amusement, "The girls have told me that you were in their year with Draco at school." Hannah just stared, "Not to worry, you will be safe here. You have my word."

Finding her voice, "Where  _is_ here, exactly? How long have I been asleep?"

Narcissa shot her a winning smile, "The Plantation of course, its exact location is unknown to even me, somewhere in Europe I suppose, rest assured, there is strong magic protecting this island. Not even the Dark Lord could find you here. You've been asleep for two days." Narcissa shot her look of sympathy, "You needed the time to heal."

Hannah flinched at the mention of Lord Voldemort, then did a double take, _island??_ She refused to acknowledge the obvious implication of her rape though, she couldn't.

"Oh dear, I didn't mean to cause you any distress, I dare say you must have been through quite an ordeal to have arrived in the condition that you did. Maybe a a change of scenery and a spot of tea would be pleasing for you?"

Hannah just nodded dumbly, while Narcissa beamed and stood, "Whispy!" The small powder blue elf appeared with a loud crack, "Could you help Miss Abbott change into something more appropriate for tea? Bring her down to the sun room after she's had something to eat and bathed." The elf nodded enthusiastically before running over to a door in the corner and rushing inside.

Narcissa turned to Hannah, "I will meet you downstairs in an hour, after you're had time to prepare yourself."

Standing, she left the room with a flourish, closing the door quietly behind her while Hannah rose from the bed, unsure what to do once the great matriarch had vacated the room.


	4. Chapter 4

**NARCISSA**

Narcissa made her way down the hallway until she came upon a door, Pushing the wood inward softly before entering, walking around to sit by the large four poster bed in the dimly lit room.

Draco was sweating profusely, a constant shudder seemingly taking over his body as he tossed and turned in black silk sheets. His white blonde hair was slicked back and drenched as the pale slender fingers of his mothers hand stroked it off of his forehead.

Narcissa Reached out to pick up a rag doused in a numbing potion, dragging it over his torso to both soothe and cool his aching body.  
   
When Draco began to twitch occasionally and a deep constant rumble was coming from somewhere deep inside his chest, Narcissa bit her lip, _he was demonstrating then_. It was official. She sighed.

Way back when, it had been all the rage for purebloods to marry Veela women, fatally beautiful witches whose magical ability derived entirely from their sexual appeal. Narcissa snorted, _pompous fools,_ none of them had thought about the fact that in order for a race such as Veela to propagate, they would need a male counterpart. By the time any one had realized the consequences of their actions it was far too late. Years had passed, dozens of pureblood children were born with a ravenous need to reproduce, at least that's all it was on the girls parts. Once they came of age that was easily begged off with quick matches, it was common place after all for pureblood witches to be married off at young a age. The problem had rooted in the male offspring.

Male Veela were very private and protective of their personal lives, they took a much more fatalistic role in mating habits, which was never paid much mind when the young, beautiful Veela women were being snatched up left right and centre. The males had never come out and the topic had never come up. Until Veela wives had started having boy children with extraordinary abilities that is. Once they hit puberty they would begin to display unusually aggressive tendencies towards certain women they came across, after suffering an unusual bout of the creature sweats.  
   
It turned out an evolutionary magical mutation in the blood called for a visceral need to find the perfect mate. A 'soulmate' of sorts Veela referred to as a 'bond mate'. Found primarily by scent, once identified the male would undergo a sort of manic craze that would only subside once the bond was slaked. In laymen's terms, bouts of rigorous sex or 'mating' to infer a solid claim on a female partner. Some texts say intercourse will continue until conception has occurred, a common misconception due to the rate of pregnancies that had come from initial bondings. Most pureblood histories write that the mating haze will subside once full domination and ownership is felt on the males part. The stories vary from family to family but one truth remained the same, complete sanity would not return until the bond was sated. Narcissa was hopeful her son would come through the sickness unscathed, that he would go out and find his intended and live in relative peace, or that his genealogy was diluted enough that he might get by without her.

Narcissa bit her lip when Draco's body shuddered again in pain, the look of agony on his sharp features broke her heart. She suspected that he'd been tortured, his body was riddled in cuts and bruises with many healed over scars. He'd been gone ten months, assumed to be dead. But now he had returned to her and she feared for his life once more.

No one in the Malfoy line had demonstrated in over four generations. Assuming they had bred the gene from the bloodline. It was obvious now though, that it had just been lying dormant in the blood. She suspected that enough physical pain could have triggered the mutation, it made her want to throw up thinking about what her only child might have endured.

Leaning over to kiss Draco on his forehead when his body relaxed momentarily, Narcissa pulled herself together and stood, giving her son a parting look before sweeping from the room.

 


	5. Chapter 5

**HERMIONE**

_Present_

Hermione was sick to death of listening to them argue. It had been going on for hours now and what was left of her patience was hanging by a thread.

They'd gathered, all of them, in the kitchen of Grimmauld place, stuffed inside like sardines, the people amongst the crowd ranged from Hogwarts students to ministry workers and Everything in between. Currently Hermione was sitting next to the head of the enlarged table that everyone had crammed around, Harry to her right and Ron on his other. The figures of Ginny, Arthur, Charlie, George, Angelina, Katie, Kingsley, Neville and Luna were amongst a few of the familiar faces.

  
"We _need_ more allies. As it stands, they outnumber us two to one. We can't try and win this war on hope alone, look where that's landed us." Dean Thomas called from his place down the table, across from Hermione. Harry, who was sitting at the head of the table to her left, blushed. _That was it._

Hermione stood up quickly and slammed her hands down on the table. The dozens of people shoved into the small kitchen area stopped speaking and looked towards the seething witch, "While I agree with Dean to an extent," she glared at him balefully, "we need to _agree_ on a plan of action before we  _take action_!"

Zacharias Smith, tall and gangly with corn silk hair and bottle green eyes and acne scars, spoke up from somewhere at the other end of the room, "And what great idea have you got to fix the situation, Granger? The werewolves and the vampires have already declared for you-know-who, so have the Dementors, who exactly can we turn to right now? Who can help us win this war? Because _I_ for one, would love to hear your plans."

People in the room began to murmur when Hermione spoke, "We'll send an envoy to the Centaurs and the Giants in the forbidden forest, maybe even the Arachnids." Hermione gestured towards Hagrid with her chin, who immediately rose up from his place at the opposite end of the transfigured table, bowing slightly before crashing back into his chair, knocking and jostling everything and everyone around him on his way up and back down. Startling all those who sat nearby.

  
Hermione smiled at him gratefully and looked on at the room of freedom fighters, Angelina Johnston stepped forward, "I'll go, you'll need people who can fight and who know how to talk to them, I had Firenze for divination a few of years ago. We were on pretty friendly terms." Hermione nodded in thanks.

"I'll go myself as well, it's my plan and I will happily lead the mission." Hermione intoned. Though when she heard the distinct snort of Zacharias Smith she narrowed her eyes, "We're going to need a few more bodies, Smith, how about you? You seem to have a vested interest in our battle strategy, this'll be your chance to show us what you can do."

Several snickers about the room could be heard and Zacharias began to redden.

"I think I should go, too." Harry spoke up.

Hermione turned to him and spoke in a soft voice, "You can't Harry, we can't risk you, not now, not yet. You have to stay here where no one can get to you."

Harry made to argue when Minerva Mcgonnagall stepped forward and placed a hand on his shoulder, "Miss Granger is right Potter. We'll plan accordingly and make sure there's enough fighters to keep them safe, but you cannot leave Grimmauld Place. Not now."

Harry slumped his shoulders and Ron patted him comfortingly on the back before he shot Hermione a look to which she ducked her head. Averting her gaze and hiding her face in her hair so she didn't have to meet his adoring eyes. That relationship had quickly withered on the vine when it became abundantly clear to Hermione that Ron really did have the emotional and mental range of a teaspoon. Sighing, she turned her back on him and after some negotiating, gestured for the people in the room picked to go on the diplomatic mission. She had initially hoped that ignoring the situation would give Ron the message but alas, it wasn't to be. Nowadays avoidance was her only friend.

 


	6. Chapter 6

**HERMIONE**

  
"Okay people, look alive. We expect this mission could take up to two weeks, depending on how long it takes us to find each populace. Hagrid is going to make his way to the Arachnids alone. They're liable to attack the rest of us on site, so we'll be making our way to the Centaurs first. Once we're done there, we'll rendezvous with Hagrid, back here in two days time at dawn. Then we'll be heading into the mountains to meet with the Giants. Keep alert at all times, these woods could be riddled with snatchers. Our objective is stealth, in and out. Okay, lets go."

The small group of witches and wizards began the trek into the deep, dark woods. All wearing various arrays of jeans and easily camouflage-able clothing with hiking boots and packs.

Unidentifiable noises could be heard at random intervals while Hermione took point at the head of the group, hair pulled back in a tight braid, camo tank and khaki pants, with high laced up black boots, she felt like a regular G.I Jane. Snickering she looked around, wand raised as she scouted around, Angelina covering their rear. Zacharias, Neville, Cho Chang and Charlie Weasley were the others bodies chosen, making up their team.

It didn't take them long to find the herd. Hagrid had told them what he knew about their daily runs and they simply laid in wait before following their tracks at a much slower pace.

It was getting quite dark when they stumbled upon an open clearing through the black trees, standing on top of a bluff through the foliage was Firenze himself, flaming red hair giving him away in an instant, two young looking centaur men with dark coloring and intense expressions stood by, arms crossed.

Approaching them slowly, Firenze stepped forward to greet the group, "Hermione Granger, we have been expecting you."

Hermione stepped in front of her team, bowing at the waist, "Thank you for coming out to meet with us, Firenze. We come as representatives of The Order, to ask for your aid."

Firenze took a step closer, "Indeed, Harry Potter will have our support."

Hermione sighed, this was going easier than expected, "We thank you for your allegiance." Bowing slightly once again in deference.

Hermione and Firenze held each other's stare, spring green meeting honeyed gold. One of the Centaurs behind Firenze clopped impatiently. Unfazed, he stepped closer to Hermione, leaning down to whisper quietly.

"I leave you with this message. Your journey is far from over Hermione Granger, a storm of silver and lightning is coming for you. It is up to you though, to dictate its course." With that he touched her shoulder briefly before turning and galloping off into the tRees with his brethren.

Hermione was frozen. The heavy stone in the pit of her stomach at his words made her feel like she was being watched. Hermione didn't believe in divination necessarily, but she did believe that centaurs held certain knowledge about the universe that no one could explain or that should be ignored. It was a part of their mystique. What Firenze told her had been a warning. He hadn't said it to unsettle her, he had told her to prepare her. She rolled his words around in her mind, ' _Your_ _journey_ _is_ _far_ _from_ _over_.' Well that was plain enough. They had a far ways to go before this war would ever be over. ' _A storm of silve and lightning_ '. She tried to think what this could be about, coming up blank. She probably wouldn't realize what he'd meant until after it had happened she thought bitterly.

"Hermione?"

She turned to see that it was Charlie addressing her, "What did he say? When he was whispering to you."

Hermione turned, looking at the ground, "Who knows? Apparently I have a part to play. Don't we all?"

With that she began the trek back the way they'd come, not waiting to see the looks of curiosity from the group trailing behind her.

It was pitch black and Hermione found herself constantly getting caught on roots and rocks around her feet, despite the soft glow of her wand partially lighting her way. It was a while later when she the heard frantic shouts from a short distance away. Hermione froze, holding her hand out palm up behind her to stop the procession. Listening carefully, Hermione peeled her eyes through the trees. Looking for any signs that they were being watched.

A sudden blast of red in the distance and a flurry of shouts sent her survival instincts into overdrive, "Lets move!"

The team of freedom fighters began running blindly through the brush. Panic suffused their bodies, pushing them harder. The voices behind them were becoming more frequent but seemed to be getting farther away, Hermione chanced looking over her shoulder to see Charlie and Angelina were keeping pace. Zacharias seemed to be somewhere further off to her right, unseen through the darkness and trees, Neville and Cho in front of her.

Hermione slowed to a stop, panting and dripping sweat. Pushing herself upright with some effort, Hermione looked around, "Looks like they've lost us for now. I want us traveling in groups of two. Try not to stray too far from each other, you might need the help. Just remember to keep moving."

Charlie and Angelina nodded, twining their hand together before disappearing into the foliage. Cho grabbing ahold of Neville before Zacharias could approach her.

"Don't expect me to hold your hand, Granger." Zacharias Intoned snidely.

Hermione rolled her eyes, sighing before trudging forward into the trees.

They had been stumbling around blindly for too long, they should have made it to the rendezvous by now, Hermione thought nervously before she took out her wand, placing it on her palm, face up.

" _Point me_." She whispered.

When her wand spun in a circle, pointing off to her far right, she got miffed. They'd gone too far West. Gesturing for Zacharias to follow over her shoulder she crept quietly though the woods. Keeping her eyes and ears peeled for any sign of humans or wildlife.

" _Granger!_ _Look out!_ " Hermione snapped her head in Zacharias's direction just into time to see a look of horror cross his face before a seemingly grey blur came crashing straight for her. It grabbed a hold of her waist and Hermione screamed bloody murder before promptly being knocked unconscious by a jet of red light hitting her square in the chest.


	7. Chapter 7

**ZACHARIAS**

Zacharias sat up, gulping down lungfuls of air, gasping, he looked around him wildly. Seeing the familiar faces of his companions, he collapsed back to the ground, looking at nothing while his heart began to slow.

" _Smith!_  Look alive! Where's Hermione??" Angelina slapped him in the face for good measure. Secretly she probably enjoyed it much more than she should have.

"Granger?" He blinked stupidly before looking up at Angelina, who was rolling her eyes.

Cho stepped forward, "You've been out for at least two hours Smith, we only just found you here, unconscious. What happened to Hermione? Where is she?"

Zacharias rubbed the back of his head where he'd obviously hit the ground when they were attacked, "I don't know." He mumbled.

"What do you mean you don't know?" Charlie spoke up for the first time.

"I mean, I don't know. We were trying to make our way back when this… _thing_ came out of the trees, it was moving too fast for me to see what it was, I heard Granger scream when it grabbed her." The group gave each other fearful glances before looking back at Zacharias, "Before I could do anything, they knocked me out. Next thing I know, I'm waking up with you lot standing around."

What Zacharias didn't tell them was that he'd turned to run when the unidentifiable blur had grabbed Hermione. Whoever, or whatever it was had hit him in the back of the head with a stunner, sending him straight into unconsciousness.

"Come on, we have to keep moving. We can look for Hermione as we go, maybe she escaped whatever it was and she'll meet us back at the extraction point." Neville intoned, unofficially stepping into the role of leader in Hermione's absence.

Everyone looked doubtful, but trudged on anyway. Eyes in constant motion in hopes of spotting their beloved friend. By the time they made it back, Hagrid was waiting, sitting on a fallen log, heating a teapot with his umbrella. At their approach he looked up, eyes searching, "where's 'Ermione?"

The travelers all looked down at their feet, shifting guiltily before Neville stepped forward.

"Hermione's disappeared Hagrid, we can't find her."


	8. Chapter 8

**HERMIONE**

  
When Hermione woke up her head felt fuzzy like she'd gotten drunk the night before, and was now suffering the consequences. But she wasn't hungover, she hadn't _been_ drinking, her mind began to race and she took note of her surroundings. She was lying in a canopy bed with silky black sheets and a roaring fire across the floor in the corner of a large stone bedroom. _She didn't recognise this place…._

As soon as the thought entered Hermione's mind she became aware of something constricting around her waist. Dropping her eyes, she noticed for the first time that she was _completely_ naked. She also noticed the constricting band was in fact an arm.

It wasn't a bandage. It was an _arm_. Panicked, Hermione stilled, tilting her head around inch by inch. She took in the pale, white blonde man pressed up tightly to her back, sleeping with his face pressed to her hair and felt ice freezing in her veins.

 _Now this was definitely a problem_. Hermione began to shake. What had happened while she was out cold? Had this man _raped_ her? ' _No, no he couldn't have_ '. She reassured herself. She'd read the books, she'd be able to tell.. _right?_

Keeping her breathes slow and steady, Hermione tried to think, _how the hell did she get here?_

Calming herself, she closed her eyes and thought back to the last thing she remembered. When she shifted and felt something hard poking her in her lower back she let out a surprised squeak and froze.

Her noise seemed to rouse the figure at her back, she held her breathe when he groaned and tugged her closer, pulling her body back up against him, pressing them closer than before and nuzzling his face further into her neck.

Hermione flushed, _how the hell was she supposed to get out of this now?_

Instead she tried to look for any obvious clues that could help her. The furniture in the room was an all dark, polished wood that held no significant patterns or emblems, so she cast her eyes wider. It wasn't until she gave up, that she noticed the hand still wrapped tightly in a vice around her waist, was wearing a ring. Inspecting it closely, it wasn't just any ring. She felt her breathe catch, if she wasn't mistaken, the intricate 'M' engraved on the ring wasn't solely for ornamentation.

Turning her head slowly, Hermione realised just who the stranger pinning her to the bed was. With a dawning comprehension she gaped, struck dumb by the fact that not only had she woken up naked in a strange bed with a strange man, she'd woken up lying next to,  _Draco. Bloody. Malfoy_.

Black was creeping into her vision once more as she began to panic. _What the hell was happening??_ Why had Draco Malfoy of all people, abducted her for some unknown reason? Calming herself before she passed out again, Hermione began to think. _Really, how had_ any _of this happened?_

Closing her eyes she tried to remember everything that had occurred before she woke up in this bed. Maybe she'd have some luck in relocating her wand but she doubted it.

Suddenly, she was caught in a memory. Running through the forbidden forest, they had found the Centaurs, her plan to ask for aid a success, until she had failed. She worried about her friends who had probably stopped looking for her by now, then her thoughts turned to Harry and this god forsaken war. He'd been right about Voldemort's horcruxes, but wrong about being the elder wands master. That title, ironically enough, still belonged to the blonde anchoring her to the bed. Harry hadn't beaten Malfoy in a duel, he'd simply snatched his wand from the floor when he'd been disarmed by Dobby upon escaping Malfoy manor. The elf was now long dead.

 _Draco Malfoy_ , who was currently nuzzling into her neck in his sleep. Shuddering she forced her mind back to her train of thought.

   
Their spells had exploded in a resonating shockwave. Harry had been meant to win, was supposed to, but hadn't. And so, in the ensuing damage, dozens of people had died. Out in the Hogwarts court yard Dearth Ealters had taken the brunt of the hit, but The Orider had suffered casualties as well. There had been so _many_ casualties in the three years since, everyone from every side had fled the battle of Hogwarts. Grimmauld place was now a fortress for any lost magical soul, the whole house had been magically renovated into an almost manor sized living space in order to accommodate the people residing there. Refugees and young Muggleborns with their families, needing to learn or hide, Grimmauld Place was not only a base, a home, but also an entire community confined to four walls and a roof.  
   
Nobody had seen the younger Malfoy in two years. That was if anyone actually  _believed_ Lavender Brown when she said he had been in the forest the night of one of her transformations. She'd been apparating into the forbidden forest for the full moon ever since Fenrir Greyback had bitten her. Aside from that one time, it had been just over three years since he'd last been spotted, during the Battle of Hogwarts. His father had bend seen several times since, looking more and more like the living dead as he seemed to fight with little regard for his life. It seemed the loss of his wife and son had left him a husk of a person with no will to carry on.  
   
In the years since, each side had battered the other repeatedly, making little progress in gaining any solid ground. It was Hermione's idea for them to turn to Muggle means. They were planning on layering the entirety of Malfoy Manor with Muggle explosives. Waiting for "The Dark Lord" to make some kind of public announcement at the ministry so they could sneak in and place as many explosives and detonators in the manor as possible. Hermione had been in the process of asking the Centaurs to assist in the last final battle after they had successfully killed Voldemort. To fight against the remaining Death Eaters and supporters once their lord was dead. The Centaurs had agreed. They would support Harry Potter in a final stand of rebellion for the sake of their world. Then Hermione and her team had swept off into the night. They couldn't risk apparating so close to the school. If they'd set off some kind of alarm or someone heard them, they could be tracked and that would be the end. And so running through the woods, she'd been blindsided by the grey blur coming at her full speed, and the red light that had hit her head on before everything had gone black.

  
Changing tactics, Hermione slowly turned her body to face her captor, wriggling an inch at a time until she was completely facing the body trapping her to the bed. His face was still pressed tightly to her neck, any hope she held out that this wasn't Malfoy was riding on the fact that he'd never be caught dead this close to a _Mudblood_. Hermione huffed indignantly and tugged at her hair, it was the last thing pinning her down besides his arm. After carefully extracting the strands, Hermione's breathes were coming a little easier. _She was almost out_.

It was when she pulled her face back from his head that it happened. The man holding her tight seemed to freeze. The pressure on her waist became a vice. Pinning her in her place.

Hermione began to hyperventilate, _no, no, no_ ….

The face lifted from from her neck to reveal pale, metallic grey eyes, watching her intently, his pale skin and hair leaving no question.

Draco Malfoy had been snuggling her in his sleep, in a strange room. Naked.

Hermione began to thrash and scream once aware of his conscious state. Draco continued pinning her with those steel grey eyes and a tight grip around her waist.

Before she could make any progress, Draco's form lifted and rolled over her body, effectively trapping her to the bed. His head dipped to her neck again where he began to lick and suck at the skin of her throat, emitting a weird purring sound that shook his frame, making Hermione aware of just _how much_ of their skin was touching and pressed together.

\--------------------------------------

 

heads up for anyone still still reading my story- I am updating my chapters in bulk, so you'll be getting a bit more here and there. Also

 

**WARNING**

Some of the next few chapters will be _very sexually explicit._ So if you don't like that sort of thing or it's not your cup of tea I don't mind, just skip the next chapter and save us both some growing pains. I'll post the warnings so you're not taken by surprise.

 

-peace xo

 


	9. Chapter 9

**HARRY**

  
"What do you mean she's _missing!?_ " Harry yelled.

The group standing in front of him wouldn't meet his eyes, none more so than Hagrid who was almost completely facing the wall.

Angelina stepped forward, "We had just made an agreement with the Centaurs when we started making our way back, we heard wand fire and voices so we split into teams and made a run for the rendezvous. Hermione was with _Smith_ ," Angelina sneered over her shoulder while Harry pinned him with a hard stare, the arrogant Hufflepuff squirmed uncomfortably.

"When we got there, they hadn't shown up yet, so we waited for about twenty minutes before going out looking for them. We had no idea where they could be so we just kind of fanned out within shouting distance. Charlie found Smith, knocked out on the ground not too far away, no signs of Hermione in sight."

Harry turned his glare back to the Hufflepuff who fidgeted nervously, " _Smith_?"

"Yes?" He gulped.

" _What happened to Hermione?_ " Harry asked in a deadly calm voice.

Glancing up quickly, Zacharias quickly looked back at the floor before speaking, "We got lost, Granger did a _point me_ spell and we changed directions. After a few minutes I could hear this… _growling_ sound." He looked around sheepishly, "I don't know what it was, but it was coming straight for us. I, I _warned_ Granger, but it was moving so fast. Before I knew it, it grabbed her and knocked me out somehow. When I came to, Weasley was standing over me. And well, you know the rest."

Harry watched Zacharias closely during the entirety of his story, there were odd pieces that didn't fit right and his fidgety nature was causing a slow boil to build in Harry's gut.

Standing up, Harry approached him calmly. Stopping in front of him he reached out a hand to touch his forearm lightly, slipping the other into his pocket.

"I believe you tried the best you could to protect her." Harry said, Smith visibly relaxed at his words and that's when Harry struck, raising his wand he shouted, " _legilimens_!"

He was quickly sucked into a a recent memory, watching as Smith and Hermione stumbled through the darkness in the woods, almost smiling at how clumsy Hermione had become in the dark.

" _Not far now._." he heard her mumble under her breathe when suddenly Smith was screaming for her, " _Granger! Look out!_ " He snapped his neck around to see a grey blur charging her at an alarming speed, and behind it, Smith running in the opposite direction.

Pulling out abruptly, Harry swung back his fist and punched Zacharias in the nose, "You didn't try to help her at all, you _fucking_ coward! _You ran away_!" Swinging his fist back again Harry punched him in the jaw, watching as he dropped to the floor, down for the count. He stepped over and drew his leg back, kicking him in the bollocks for good measure, watching in satisfaction as Zacharias doubled over coughing.

Charlie stepped forward and grasped Harry's shoulder, "Harry mate, beating up the twerp won't help anyone. We need to try and find her. I think we should send someone back to the Centaurs, ask about anything hanging around the forest."

At his words Harry felt himself calm, looking over at Charlie with a raised brow, "Why? Do you think they know something about this _blur_?"

Charlie frowned, "Not necessarily, it wouldn't hurt to ask though. I mean, when we went to see them, Firenze was waiting for us, he had a message for her that he whispered in her ear before he left. She didn't tell anyone what it was exactly but it seemed to unsettle her."

Harry groaned. No matter what happened, life was always throwing them curve balls, which was ironic considering he'd always depended on looking to Hermione for advice. He wanted to cry, it just made him angry.

"Okay, we'll send out a group, but this time I _am_ going. I don't give a _shit_ about safety. Hermione's been risking her life for me since we were eleven years old, it's time I did the same for her."

With a nod Charlie left to go and tell the others, coming to a stop in the archway, "You don't mind telling Ron do you? Shitty, I know, I just really can't deal with his drama right now."

"Sure." Harry said, fingers crossed behind his back.  _No_ _one_ wanted to tell Ron that his _one true love_ was AWOL. Harry sighed, hopefully he'd be able to get a team together and get out of the house before Ron even knew he was gone.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, so I'm trying to fill in as much of the plot as I can before I move onto the rest of the story. I've got a lot of chapters written already, just trying to find the right placement for everything.
> 
> I'll stop rambling now and let you get on with the story. :)

**HANNAH**

 Tea with Narcissa Malfoy had been a baffling experience. The fact that she had been humming the lyrics to ' _Firewhiskey on Me_ ' by the Weird Sisters when she was leading them to the sun room made Hannah want to laugh at the madness of it all. She felt like Alice in wonderland, telling Mrs Malfoy so when they were seated on the fluffy white lounges in the beautiful light stoned room.

"I assure you dear, life here is much more tedious than an imaginary Underland"

Hannah perked while Whispy poured them tea, "You know muggle literature?"

"I wouldn't say I'm a savant, one of the girls enjoys muggle authors, she loans me a few she thinks I'd enjoy. I do so love a good story. Although I _am_ partial to Tolkien."

Hannah felt like she must be gaping like a fish.

"Enough about all that. You must tell me how you and my son arrived here in the condition that you did." Narcissa pinned her with a penetrating stare.

Hannah shuddered, rubbing her arms unconsciously, Narcissa noticing her discomfort leant forward, resting her hand on Hannah's forearm, "You have nothing to fear here, I swear it. The Plantation is unplottable and untraceable. You _are_ safe here."

Hannah met the Malfoy Matriarchs eyes with a naked vulnerability before nodding cautiously, "I'd been helping move some of my muggle relatives out of the country. I'm a halfblood you see." She shot her eyes to Narcissa's face and back to the floor, "My group got out of there easy enough, but we were ambushed on our way back. I got separated and was captured. They took me to Hogwarts." She laughed weakly, "I was thrown into the dungeons and your son was in the cell next to mine."

Taking a breathe she continued, "He helped me. To get through what they did. Talked to me so I wouldn't get lost in my head." Narcissa's eyes were misty, Hannah noticed, "We made a plan, I just had to keep them distracted when they came for me again. I was able to slip one of their wands to Draco under the bars between our cells. He killed them, he killed them and we ran. We almost didn't make it when Draco was hit with a curse. I dragged him through the Fairy ring and portkeyed us here. And well, you know the rest."

Narcissa's sniffled delicately, "You poor child. What you must be going through." She tucked a stray curl behind Hannah's ear, "You are welcome to stay for as long as you'd like. We've so many people living here now, no one will even notice."

Hannah bit her lip, fighting back the emotions roiling around in her gut, "There are other people here? Is this some sort of rebel base? And where is Draco? Is he alright?"

"Uh, uh, one thing at a time dear, yes, there are _many_ people living here, no it's not a rebel base, well, not exactly." Hannah shot her a confused look, "think of it more as a refugee camp. We harbour people seeking a reprieve from the war. Some of us have family fighting for the wrong people," Narcissa's lips thinned, "others just fleeing in general. We hold to our traditions without the senseless bigotry. Not every Slytherin is a dark wizard, despite what some would have us believe. Why, I'm positive there are several halfbloods and even a few muggleborns running around these halls."

Hannah was gobsmacked, "How did you find so many people?"

"Not everyone is as understanding as you seem to be dear, I'm assuming that’s the Hufflepuff in you?" Hannah blushed, "Not to worry, a lot of pureblood families are still sending their children to Hogwarts. Despite the ongoing war or the fact that their families are caught in the middle, the children are innocent. Draco and some of his friends go to Hogwarts at the start of term each year to retrieve some of those children, the ones who want to come here that is. Draco was captured last year when they went to retrieve some of the new students."

 _"I thought I'd never see him again._ " Narcissa whispered.

"And Draco? Is he alright?"

Narcissa's smiled warmly, "He's just fine dear, he's experiencing some hereditary ailments that have been keeping him confined to his bed, but he should be in perfectly good health in the next couple of days."

Hannah felt almost shy, "Would you mind terribly if I visited him?"

Narcissa looked contemplative as she thought it over, flickering her eyes curiously over Hannah's face before answering, "I'm sure he would appreciate the company."


	11. Chapter 11

**HARRY**

Harry had Angelina, Cho, Ginny, Dean and Seamus with him when he left Grimmauld Place, he'd informed Mcgonnagal and Kingsley of his plans out of respect and had left to find Hermione, despite their protests that someone else could go.

Now the six of them were trampling through the Forbidden Forest and Harry was on the look out for the slightest threat. Angelina and Cho took the front, leading them back to their original meeting point and the last place Hermione had been seen.

Poking around and seeing nothing but the trees Harry turned to the girls, "There's nothing here."

Angelina nodded, "it was dark but we swept through with a fine tooth comb. She just vanished."

Harry frowned, undecided on what to do next when Seamus stepped forward, "Ye' said ye' followed the Centaurs after their run. Why don't we start there?"

Harry nodded. "We'll go with Seamus's idea, we have to head straight to the only lead we have."

Turning to Angelina and Cho, "Can you remember where you were when you were meeting with Firenze?"

The girls looked at each other unsurely, "Maybe, but it would be easier to head to the stake out point. We were given pretty clear directions to get there the first time round so we're confident we can make it without any trouble" Cho spoke up.

Nodding, Harry gestured for them to take the lead and fell into step behind them, next to Ginny who was looking at him with worry, "Do you think she's alive, Harry? It's already been over a day. She would have come back by now if she was alive right?"

Harry shook his head, "Not if she's being held captive. They weren't going for the kill. I looked in Smith's memories, I couldn't see exactly what grabbed her but I could tell it was definitely…" he struggled for the right word.

Ginny whispered, "Definitely what, Harry?"

He glanced at her quickly, " _Not human_."

Ginny bit her lip as they continued trudging on in silence.

After an hour Angelina spoke up, "it's not far from here, if we follow this trail east we should stop right where the Centaurs pass for their run."

They followed her over the bramble and dirt until they came upon a grassy bluff off to the side of the clearing. Angelina pointed, "Over there, that's where we camped out when we found them."

The group went about setting up a campsite, putting up wards and pitching a tent. Afterwards, everyone had had dinner and Cho had won three rounds of exploding snap before they started trudging off to sleep one by one.

Ginny looked over her shoulder at Harry who was still seated on a log near the fire, "Coming, Harry?"

"In a sec, Gin."

Nodding, Ginny stepped inside the tent and left Harry to his thoughts, he was so lost in his own head that he didn't realise when the sun was beginning to rise.

One by one his companions rose to greet the day. Dean had an impossibly high cowlick that he seemed completely unaware of and Seamus was humming a tune while he used his wand to boil a kettle.

"Tea, mate?"

Harry nodded gratefully and accepted his cup just as Ginny sat down by his side.

"You didn't sleep at all did you?"

Harry sipped his tea without comment and Ginny sighed, resting her head on his shoulder and rubbing his arm soothingly, "We'll find her Harry."

Harry said nothing. Just stood up and prepared for the days trek.

  
They had only been waiting for an hour when he heard it, hooves. Lots of them. Getting louder and louder Harry held his breath as the first of the herd broke the tree line. He watched in fascination as they pushed forward in fast powerful strides, seemingly able to navigate without worry of running into anything.

" _Whoa_.." Dean murmured in wonder.

When the dust began to settle after the last of the Centaur herd had run by, Harry stood quickly, hiking his pack and stepping forward. The others followed close behind and for the next two hours, they followed the hoof prints left in the dirt.

It was well passed midday by this point and it was making some of the group angsty, "Harry, let's just stop and take a rest yeah? The tracks aren't going anywhere and we all need the break." Angelina said.

Looking torn, Harry nodded, as a group they moved through the trees, looking for a clearing to sit down for a meal when they came upon a stream.

Everyone had decided to sit down and soak their feet while they ate, Harry was restless. Potential information on Hermione's whereabouts was within his grasp and he couldn't relax. So instead he chose to walk alongside the water to help him think.

He had found nothing, no clues or hints as to what had happened to Hermione and it left a heavy pit in Harry's stomach. How could she just _disappear?_ She was Hermione Granger, brightest witch of her age. She was always there saving his life and getting him out of trouble. He'd never really thanked her for it. Then again, she had never expected him to. There was never any question about whether or not she'd be there to back him up, she always was, no matter what. Even after the horrible event at the battle of Hogwarts she'd never faltered in her faith in him. She believed that he would succeed no matter how bad it got. She carried his faith when he had none left to give.

Harry felt his eyes begin to water, Hermione was a true leader, not him. He was just inconveniently shoved into the role time and again. Hermione though, she'd taken a stand. Since that horrific night when everything had gone wrong, she had held him up and carried him through his despair. She had organised and planned and strategised. Even going as far as tutoring some of the younger people now living in his house.

Just when he was beginning to plummet head first into his grief once more, Harry heard a rustling in the trees behind him.

Turning quickly, wand raised Harry came face to face with Firenze himself.

Firenze bowed, "Harry Potter, it has been a long time."

Harry blinked, "Firenze, how did you know I was here?"

The Centaur looked at him serenely, "I saw you coming, Harry Potter."

Harry felt a chill run up his spine, the double meaning of the words weren't lost on him, "My friend, Hermione. She came to talk to you a couple of days ago."

Firenze nodded, "She did, along with her friends. Miss Granger was very ill prepared."

"Ill prepared?"

"Yes, very. A storm was coming for Miss Granger. But it appears she is navigating it smoothly." Firenze was staring up at the sky with a curious look that left Harry baffled.

"A storm? What storm? Where is she? You said she was 'navigating' it, that means she's alive, right?"

Firenze looked down intently at Harry, "I see only what the stars have shown me. Miss Granger has many choices upon her, many burdens. I am confident she will succeed." He raised his gaze back to the skies, "The stars do not give us choices which we are unable to bare."

"Right. But can you tell me anything about Hermione? What was that thing that took her?"

"Not a thing but a who. Even creatures have names, just as you or I. This one has yet to name his price but Miss Granger will surely pay it."

Harry was overwhelmed. He didn't really understand what the red headed Centaur was saying. Before he could do anything, Firenze stepped forward, "I must leave you now Harry Potter. Your friends will find you soon, it is only a matter of time."

Before Harry could say goodbye, Firenze had turned, galloping back into the trees. Harry watched in a daze for several moments before turning and going back to camp.

"Where the hell have you been?" Ginny asked when Harry came walking up.

"Firenze found me." All heads swivelled in his direction, " _Hermione's alive_." Several cheers erupted, "But he wouldn't tell me where she is, of he didn't even _know_. I wouldn't have a clue. All I know is that she's being held somewhere and that she knows what she's doing. That much was clear from his words. We can only hope she makes it back to us."

 

\----------------------------------------

 

Hey guys so I've been taking some breaks in between chapters, it's a lot to sift through. I've activated the comments on this story so feel free to drop me a line. 

-peace xo


	12. Chapter 12

**NARCISSA**

Narcissa led Hannah through the corridors and up the stairs into a room in a quiet hallway.

As soon as she opened the door, Hannah could hear the animalistic growls and groans coming from the bed. She followed Narcissa nervously around to the side of the bed. Catching sight of Draco's form, sweating profusely and panting hard. The noises erupting from his chest as he occasionally twitched, scaring her.

"What's happening to him?" Hannah whispered.

Narcissa picked up her potion soaked rag from the bowl on the bedside table and leant down to wipe soothingly across her sons chest before answering, "He's in transition."

"Transition?"

She glanced at Hannah before continuing, "A long time ago, the Malfoys married into a Veela line. No one in the family has demonstrated in over four generations. Until Draco," she brushed his hair back from his forehead gently, "It's a bit odd to be demonstrating this late in life but I suspect his physical abuse while in captivity is what activated the dormant magic in his blood."

"The Malfoy's are Veela??"

"Quite scandalous, I know. Lucius's ancestors would contract betrothals before heirs had the chance to demonstrate. They thought if they bonded them with blood magic prior to the change it would be enough to eventually breed out the gene." Narcissa had led Hannah down into the chair next to her, " _Evidently not_." She murmured.

Hannah watched Draco with wide frightened eyes and Narcissa decided to test something out, "Why don't you hold his hand, dear? It might comfort him some, knowing he has a friend here."

Hannah bit her lip before reaching her hand out, slowly. Just when her fingertips brushed Draco's skin, he flinched, growling low and menacing.

"Oh dear, he must be in too much pain. I am sorry." Narcissa mentally took note of her sons reaction to the girl. Well she wasn't the one. That juvenile hope was squashed and she made to stand.

"Are you leaving, Mrs Malfoy?"

"I've told you, call me Narcissa, dear," she tutted, "I must go, I need to speak with Draco's friends."

Hannah nodded, "Would you mind terribly if I stayed a while with him?"

Narcissa shot the girl a soft smile, "Of course not dear, I'm sure he'd appreciate it."

With that Narcissa swept from the room, weaving through the halls until she came to another door, knocking gently to announce her arrival, she slipped inside closing the door quietly behind her.

Inside the room seemed to be some kind of social lounge. Plush chairs by the fire, a bar in the corner and a muggle pool table by the window. The whole room was done in dark rich colours, giving it a smoky feel.

Currently Adrian Pucey and Astoria Greengrass were in the middle of a game with the table and wooden sticks and balls, chatting happily all the while.

Daphne Greengrass and Pansy Parkinson were sitting by the fire gossiping about one thing or another and Theo Nott was sitting on a stool at the bar, listening to Blaise Zabini drone on about drink etiquette.

Narcissa swept over to the bar and all conversation ceased as she sat delicately on a stool by Theo.

"A merlot if you'd be so kind, Blaise." The toffee skinned man with green eyes winked and set about getting a glass and pouring Narcissa her drink.

"How's he doing?" Theo asked staring into the bottom of his whiskey glass. He made a scruffy figure, his white shirt sleeves rolled up sloppily and a heavy layer of stumble lined his usually smooth jaw. Blaise didn't seem to be faring much better either.

"The worst has passed, now he seems to be sweating it out for the most part."

Blaise set her drink down with a heavy frown, "So he's going to be alright?"

Narcissa looked to Blaise, raising her hand to cup his cheek, and looking into his bloodshot eyes. "I've told you a thousand times. It wasn't your fault, Blaise. Draco knew the risks and he took them anyway. Let us just be glad that he's been returned to us after so long."

Blaise placed his hand over hers and lowered it to the bench.

Pansy broke the silence from across the room, "So what did Abbott say? How did she come to be unconscious on our front step with Draco, ten months after he disappeared?"

Narcissa frowned, "It appears that Draco was being held in the Hogwarts dungeons this entire time." Stunned silence followed that statement.

Taking a large sip of her drink she continued, "Miss Abbott was only recently captured. They were both imprisoned in the dungeons and broke out together. She mentioned that Draco was chained up with magic stunting cuffs. it could be the reason why Draco is only just now demonstrating _or_ that he's demonstrating at all."

Silence filled the room.

"Well, this is shit." Daphne said breaking the silence.

" _Daph!_ Don't be rude!" Astoria called from the pool table.

"Well it's true. Draco's been missing for almost a year and now he's Veela. It's getting more and more dangerous going back to Britain, and I for one, think we have enough brats running around as is." Daphne shot Astoria a condescending looking.

"Children please! Draco is going to need support from all of you when he wakes up. He needs to know that you're here for him." Narcissa said in a shaky voice.

Blaise stepped around the bar and hugged Narcissa into his side, "We'll be right here waiting to make sure he's alright when he wakes up, okay aunt Cissa?"

Narcissa sniffled, "You're a darling boy Blaise, any girl would be lucky to have you."

Blaise smirked looking over Narcissa's head, "Hear that Daph? Any girl would be _lucky_ to have me."

Daphne raised a blonde brow, "I wouldn't say lucky, more like cursed."

Blaise grinned, "You know, you love me."


	13. Chapter 13

**DAPHNE**

_One year earlier…_

 The Forbidden forest was pitch black as the four Slytherins stepped through the trees cautiously. Unable to use wand light this close to the castle, they had to rely on their senses to navigate through the woods. Theo and Blaise were leading the way while Draco and Daphne hung back to catch the show.

" _Ow!_ That's my _foot_ you tosser!" Theo shoved Blaise forward into the bushes.

" _Fuck!_ " Blaise did an awkward roll off to the side and hit the ground to avoid the bush and its talon like thorns.

Draco and Daphne sniggered, pulling himself off of the ground, Blaise shot Theo a stink eye, "I'm _sorry_ you couldn't get your _fat ass_ to move faster than a _slug_ to avoid being _trodden on."_

Theo hit Blaise with a silencing charm before he could get another word in edge wise. The three of them watched while Blaise continued ranting a moment before he realised what had happened. More sniggering erupted from the group and Theo stepped forward, ignoring Blaise's silent yelling for him to remove it.

"How many are we picking up this time?" Theo asked into the silence.

Draco turned to face him, "Maybe six? Abigail has a few friends of friends and one kid from her year that stayed behind for family."

Theo looked back, "What's the kids name?"

"Luka, third year Ravenclaw. Younger brother is a first year Slytherin, they've got an older brother in seventh year, also Slytherin." Draco grimaced, "Not the kind to run away from home though."

The group grew silent.

Once they'd reached the outskirts of the castle Draco turned. "Right, Theo and I will head in to retrieve the kiddies. Blaise, Daph, you stay out here, keep a look out and let us know if anyone's coming."

Draco stalked off, Theo trailing behind him into the night while Blaise and Daphne stood around watching silently for a few moments before Daphne spoke up. "I need to pee, I'll be back in a minute."

Daphne slinked off into the trees without a backwards glance. Blaise slumped back against a tree, twirling his wand around his fingers. When he heard voices he looked up,and he could see Theo and Draco with a large group of kids. Larger than they were anticipating. Squinting his eyes, Blaise stared hard, he could make out at least a dozen tiny first years. Some bundled up in school robes, others barefoot in their pyjamas. They were being herded by Theo and Draco passed the hidden entrance to the potion masters quarters. An escape route Snape had shown the boys in their fifth year after the tri-wizard tournament. Though none of the boys had anticipated ever using it, least of all to smuggle pureblood children away from their families.

Theo was at the forefront, eyes peeled as he led the children like a trail of ducklings towards Blaise's hiding place.

It wasn't until they'd almost made it across the lawn that he saw it, someone crouched down behind an outcropping of rocks, off to the left, wand aimed towards his friends and the children.

Blaise sprang up, giving a panicked shout to get his friends attention, completely forgetting the silencing spell still in place.

"What are you doing?"

Blaise turned to see Daphne watching him with her signature raised brow, he grabbed her arms, dragging her forward and pointing frantically at the solitary wizard sitting amongst the rocks.

Daphne's eyes widened and she ran out of the cover of the trees, " _THEO!_ move your asses!! _NOW!!_ "

Just like that, their stealthy plans turned into open season as several wizards popped up from their hiding places, firing off spell after spell at the group running for the forest.

Daphne had her wand raised and pointed, firing back for all she could as the children began rushing passed her into the trees, Blaise leading the first few to safety.

Theo and Draco were turned, casting shields to keep the young ones from exposure to stray curses, turning and running into the trees only after the last one had passed by them, Snatchers and Death Eaters hot on their tails.

Draco unwrapped a long, thin rope from his wrist and threw it forward to Theo, turning to cast a series of hexes on the gaining snatchers.

Theo had managed to gather all the children into the circle and had unravelled the rope, telling each child to grip it tight.

" _Draco!"_ Daphne screamed, just as a _Crucio_ came flying at him from his far left, bringing him to the ground instantly. Draco screamed in agony and the snatchers were upon him. He was gone from sight when Blaise charged forward, brandishing his wand. Daphne looked back desperately, their friend now on his knees, bound. He mouthed, " _Go_ ," to Daphne catching her eye, steel grey piercing forest green. Tears were threatening to spill when she grabbed Blaise by the upper arm, dragging him backwards before he could leave the circle. Watching Draco with terrified eyes as they were all sucked away.

 Blaise had been inconsolable for days. Narcissa willed away her time in the gardens. Theo retreated to his botany laboratory. Pansy and Astoria had wrangled Adrian into helping them teach the kids. And Daphne was drowning her sorrows in the bottom of a bottle.

Draco's face before they portkeyed away haunted her dreams. Every night she saw his face, whispering " _Go_." Over and over, night after night. Firewhiskey had become the only thing that could block out her hellish limbo.

Currently she was seated at the bar in the lounge, slumped drunkenly on the bench, holding herself up with her grip on her bottle of Whiskey.

She looked into the bottom of her glass, swirling amber liquid distorting her image of the wooden counter. "Go." Tipping her glass back and drinking half of the fiery liquid.

"Go."

She finished the glass, attempting to open the bottle and pour herself another, but unable to grip cap.

" _GO_." She slumped on the bench, sobbing silently into the wood.

"Daphne?" Soft hands wrapped around her shoulders, tucking her hair back and revealing her face. Astoria was looking down at her with concerned azure eyes.

"He told me to _go_ , Tori. He told me to go." She sobbed.

Astoria wrapped her arms around her sister in a tight embrace. Her dainty hands rubbing soothing circles on her back, she whispered in her ear, "It's not your fault Daphne, it's not anybody's fault."

Daphne pulled back to look at her, "He told me to go." She hiccuped.

"I know, Daph. Nobody blames you."

She sniffled, hiccuping again.

Astoria smiled ruefully, "You need a bath, Daph. Then you need some solid foods so you can sober up. We need help tutoring the kids, Adrian is as useful as a stump."

Laughing wearily through her sniffle, Daphne let her sister slip her arm under hers, bracing her and guiding her from the room.


	14. Chapter 14

**DRACO**

  _Present_

 "But you've only been back two months!" Narcissa cried, following Draco as he swept through the halls.

"Exactly, two months, Mother. I'm going mad, I need to get out. These walls are suffocating."

She trailed after him, "Draco Lucius Malfoy! You listen to me, you're not ready to be around people yet. You're still learning how to control your demonstrations! What if something sets you off and makes you angry? _Well?"_

Draco maintained his pace until they'd reached the front doors to The Plantation, where Blaise and Theo stood waiting.

Turning around, he placed his hands on his Mother's shoulders, "Stop overthinking everything Mother. I've been to the other side and made it back alive. I will return. I promise." He kissed her forehead gently before gesturing for his friends to open the door to leave.

Walking down the pathway in silence, the boys heard Draco's mother calling out, " _Draco Malfoy you come back to me in one piece, do you hear me? I will slice off your feet if anything happens to you, do you understand me?"_

Chuckling the boys made it to the end of the drive, each grabbing onto the rope in Blaise's hands.

"You sure you're ready for this?" Blaise asked.

Draco rolled his eyes, snatching up the rope and stating firmly, " _Portus_."

  
They had retrieved this years recruits free of any trouble. It had turned out last time Luka's little brother Liam had informed their eldest siblings of their plans to escape in the young, naïve hope that he would come with them. He hadn't. Instead their brother Logan had reported their intentions to the professors. It had been a miracle they'd nearly all made it out at all, that Draco had been the only collateral in the ensuing chaos. But they hadn't been expecting them to enter the castle via a hidden passage, they had been granted that one small advantage which had helped save all their lives.

Now Draco, Theo and Blaise were leading a group of only four students. It was getting harder and harder to find any wayward children wanting an escape from the horrors of The Dark Lords rule, too afraid or too far gone to want to accept the chance at a new life.

The trip was going smoothly, not a thing had gone wrong and they were almost to the fairy circle when Draco stiffened.

Theo and Blaise brought the kids to a stop, watching their friend for any signs of trouble.

"Draco?" Theo asked quietly, stepping forward. Not noticing Draco had raised his head and was sniffing at the air.

"Draco, what's wrong?"

Draco spun around too fast for them to react and sped off into the night, further into the forest.

" _Fuck!"_

Spinning around to face Blaise and the trembling kids, "Get them back to The Plantation. I'll go after him."

Nodding, Blaise led the panicking first years off at a fast pace towards their escape, While Theo broke into a sprint in the direction Draco had gone.

Minutes later he came upon a shocking scene. Draco was in full demonstration. Wings spread wide, mouth full of sharp extended teeth, clawed hands and almost catlike, quicksilver eyes staring through the trees, panting heavily.

Looking in the direction his friend was turned, Theo came face to face with two people stumbling around in the dark.

Looking back at his friend, he saw Draco lower into a crouch, muscles tensing, "Draco, _No!"_

But it was too late, Draco had sped off through the trees, charging full tilt at the two travellers. One looked up and yelled something out before leaving his friend and running in the opposite direction.

 _Coward_. Thought Theo, sending a stunning hex at the back of his head.

Turning around quickly he could see that Draco had grabbed ahold of a girl with long brown hair in a tight braid.

Thinking fast, he sent off two more stunning spells, knocking them both out instantly. Wiping his hands on his pants gingerly, Theo stepped forward.

_Oh shit…_

Lying on the ground in Draco's tight grip, was Hermione Granger.

Looking around frantically, Theo leant down and attempted to haul Draco off the ground but he appeared to be anchored to Hermione's side. Huffing, he scratched the back of his head.

"Theo!"

Snapping his head around, he saw Blaise coming through the trees.

"What the fuck happened?"

Theo gestured to the ground, "You tell me."

Looking down at the unconscious couple on the ground, Blaise stared blankly before bursting into hysterical laughter, bending at the waist.

"I don't see how this is a laughing matter."

Blaise wiped at his eyes, straightening up, "Don't you get it? He's imprinted on her!"

Double taking, Theo spun around to stare at his friend before a slow grin broke out across his face.

"So, what should we do with them?"

Blaise stepped forward, waving his wand and levitating the two of them together, "We take them back to Aunt Cissa, she'll know what to do." Looking over his shoulder at the blonde crumpled on the ground, "What should we do about him?"

Theo waved, already walking back, "Leave him there, he was going to sacrifice Granger while he ran to safety."

Blaise scowled down at the Blonde, " _Ponce_."


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay guys here it is! I promised lemons and here they are. For those of you unwilling to read through sex scenes, you've been warned. I don't want to hear your whinging that you've been scarred for life.

**WARNING, SCENES OF A GRAPHIC SEXUAL NATURE ARE IN THIS CHAPTER.**

 

**HERMIONE**

_Holy. Shit,_  Hermione thought as she felt Draco's lips slide down her collar bone in a caress. His purring vibrated through her body, settling in her belly, making her twitch.

Something seriously wrong was happening to her, Hermione was becoming so overwhelmed she felt like sobbing. There was something creature like in Malfoy's mannerisms, she just couldn't pin point what it was exactly that was going on with him. Analysing his behaviour, Hermione began to think. He was exhibiting signs of a Fae humanoid, the almost glowing eyes, the purring, the touching. He was either some kind of Incubus, she shuddered at the thought, or some kind of Selkie or Vampire even. Looking him over from her limited perspective, she noticed two angry red wounds in crescent shapes behind his shoulder blades and felt her blood run cold. She began a mental list of everything she'd noticed.

He was obviously not in his right mind, his instincts seemed to be ruling him, nor did he seem to be consciously aware. Next was the purring, the rumble coming from his chest was having a visceral effect on her body, despite her mental anguish, Hermione felt pleasantly relaxed. Next were the wounds on his back, they were too perfectly placed to be from a fight. Raising her hand hesitantly, she ran her fingertips lightly over the muscles of his back, feeling what she had been dreading finding. _Wings_. Malfoy had wings pulled tight under the muscles of his back. The grinding feeling between his shoulder blades could only be from one thing. _He was demonstrating_. Holding in a whimper Hermione ran her eyes over as much of Malfoy as she could, there was no denying it, the facts were right in front of her. Draco Malfoy was _Veela_.  
   
Her mind went to Veela facts, whilst the females turned into harpies when angered or threatened, bird like creatures with beaks and clawed talons, male Veela's shifted into something closer resembling a griffin, sprouting wings and lionistic features, although, they didn’t throw fire balls. _They_ _shot lightning._  
   
_'A storm of silver and lightning is coming for you_ '. Firenze words rang out ominously in her mind. _Fucking Centaurs._ She thought bitterly, _Always speaking in riddles._ Hermione's heart beat felt like a humming birds wings beating in her chest as she continued analysing facts and clicking the pieces of the puzzle together perfectly. Heart hammering away, she tried to recall any more information, but was cut short when she felt a wet tugging at her breast.

Breath caught in her throat, Hermione looked down to see Draco Malfoy with his lips wrapped around her nipple, sucking gently as he watched her with those quicksilver eyes, purring all the while, sending jolting vibrations through his body into hers, making Hermione want to moan.  
   
She bit her lip to trap the noise in her throat as she looked at the man tugging on her chest with his teeth.  
   
She'd accepted her fate now, there was nothing she could do. Malfoy had her trapped, and from what she could tell he was pulling out every stop to ensure her compliance. She had no wand, no idea where she was- because there was no way this was Malfoy manor- nor any clue how to contact anyone. Malfoy seemed to be controlling himself for her sake to an extent, which she appreciated, though she would never admit it. He might've given her some kind of a warning.

The scent of his pheromones were addling her brain, but not enough to completely turn off her rational mind, just enough to push it back and keep her occupied with the sensations flooding her system.  
   
Eyes flashing a bright silver, Draco pulled off her nipple with a wet _pop_ , reaching out with his thumb to stroke it over her bottom lip, pulling it from her teeth. He leant forward, pressing his lips to hers gentry.

Hermione's mind was becoming a fuzzy haze, she couldn't remember her train of thought, coming back to the present when Draco pushed his tongue inside her mouth, tangling it with hers in a dominating caress, her factual mind flickered back to life as she fought the whimper tickling up her throat.  
   
Once Veela reached full physical maturity, they began exhibiting the physical traits required in the search for a mate. These traits included, enhanced physical senses, a raging libido, pheromone glands under the skin and finally, a physical transformation, wherein wings would begin to erode from between the shoulder blades and all animalistic physical traits would periodically morph over the skin and bones until the shift came naturally. Altering their physical make up. Apparently the whole process was quite long and painful. No way had been determined when the change would happen, only that it _would_ , soon after physical maturity. And in some cases, could last for days.  
   
One last fact slithered into Hermione's mind as Draco pulled away from her mouth, only to trail his lips slowly back down her chest, flicking his tongue over her skin as he went, leaving a cool, wet trail over her sternum before nuzzling against a tightened peak and flicking his tongue out to suck it between his teeth.  
   
Hermione's battle against noise was lost when Draco's hands came down to pinch and pluck at her nipples along with his mouth. Her eyes rolled back in her head and her back bowed slightly off the bed.  
   
" _Unnnngghh_!" A groan ripped from her throat.  
   
Draco, popped off of her nipple to observe her intently, she was panting hard, a fine sheen of sweat coating her forehead as her chest heaved. Draco's head cocked to the side in an almost bird like fashion as he observed her, nostrils flaring when she began to tremble. That's when she noticed something, the blood pumping in her ears was getting louder and louder, her body temperature was getting hotter by the second and a heavy knot in her pelvis was pulling her hips up against Draco's waist in a slow grind, _he was flooding her senses with pheromones._  
   
Cooing softly once again, he lifted his body off of hers slightly, continuing to invade her senses, he licked and nibbled lower down her abdomen until he got to her groin, placing a wet sucking kiss on her pelvic bone, just above her thatch of dark curls. Hermione let out a garbled choking noise while Draco smirked, earning down and running his nose through the damp lips at the apex of her thighs, purring contently.  
   
Hermione's entire body was shaking, Draco's sharp fingers held her hips to the bed as he continued running his nose over her quivering flesh in a barely there caress, blowing hot air in small puffs.

Suddenly his lips were on her, sucking hard at the pink hooded flesh between her thighs. Hermione thrashed wildly, unable to pull away from the intense pleasure assaulting her while Draco pinned her down with his iron grip at her hips and his head buried between her thighs.  
   
Hands balled into tight fists, a scream tore through Hermione's throat as her body arched off the bed while Draco held her legs open wide with his body wedged tightly against hers. She was lost in the almost painful pleasure pulsing hotly in her belly as Draco continued licking and sucking her hard through her climax. White lights entered her vision and she was quickly pushed into the abyss again, all the while he didn't let up, lapping at her core, holding her hostage to the pleasure he inflicted with his tongue.  
   
Draco pushed her over repeatedly, her body too weak to fight the foreign heat burning through her veins. At some point he'd let go of her hips and had stretched his hands up to pinch and pluck her nipples while he continued suckling her pussy. Finally, the pleasure had become so intense it was beyond beyond painful and with a guttural cry Hermione blacked out.

 When she came to, there was a large body gyrating on top of hers, sweat slicked skin rubbing and lips once again turging at her nipples. he'd lined his hips up with hers, dragging his engorged length back and forth through the soft, wet heat between her legs.

When Hermione saw all of this her entire face and chest burned red, _she'd never done anything like this in her life! Let alone with Draco bloody Malfoy_! Draco had sucked the haze from her blood and she was reeling over events. It seemed like yesterday Hermione had been sitting in the library of Grimmauld Place, drinking tea with Harry and Ginny as they discussed muggle explosive devices with Mcgonagall.

Noticing her conscious state, Draco rose up and buried his face in her neck, purring loudly, she felt it vibrating through her very bones as he pressed their bodies as close as physically possible, all the while sliding his hips between hers in a slow, hypnotic rhythm.

His purring had her entire body splayed like a limp noodle, sighing with all the pleasurable sensations assaulting her. Suddenly and unexpectedly Draco rocked back further and began pushing the head of his cock into the virginal hole between her open thighs that he'd thus far avoided. Hermione's body began to clench against the intrusion, while Draco's purring reached extreme levels and she was no longer able to tense as the hard muscle pushing inside her slid all the way to the hilt. Slicing through her virginity. When she felt the full weight of his intrusion, Hermione let out a grunt which turned into a sharp cry as his suddenly lengthened teeth bit into the juncture of her neck, pumping burning venom into her veins and binding their souls together while he rocked in and out of her body gently. She could feel a thick golden thread wrapping itself around her heart, tying her soul to his irrevocably.

Suddenly great white wings split out of the wounds on Draco's back in an amazing display, spread wide while he pumped his hips into her furiously. In and out, until with a low, snarling growl he came. Shoving inside so deep he was pushing her body up the bed. Her head swam with the intense, uncomfortable fullness she felt and the spicy sting in her blood of a foreign magic weaving through her essence.

 Draco's body draped heavily over hers, their breaths intermingling with the hot stick of their sweaty bodies while he kept his face buried in her throat, unable to confront her wrath or horror at his actions she was unsure, but Hermione forced herself to remain calm and keep a level head as her mind raced with all the possible meanings of what had just transpired.  
   
 Before her thoughts could wander too far, Hermione felt Draco shift up onto his elbows, arms locked around her face, looking down at her with quicksilver eyes and an indiscernible expression. They held each other's stare until he reached one hand up to tuck some hair behind her ear, then swooping down, capturing her lips in a light, sweet kiss. Taken back by his actions, she did nothing but kiss him back with wide eyes glued to his pale form. His wings had retracted for now, but his heavily muscled back still rippled suggestively of what lay beneath.  
   
Before she knew what was happening, Draco reared back and flipped her over quickly. Hermione was now stretched out flat along the mattress until her splayed, bent legs propped up her rear in a most exposing way.  
   
Flushing with humiliation Hermione tried to wriggle further up the bed for leverage before Draco grasped her hips, dragging her back to her original position and giving her right cheek a harsh  _slap_ that rung out loudly in the room. Then she heard his low, warning growl.  
   
Hermione held still, keeping her breaths as slow and steady as she could until Draco started purring again, running his hands up and around the flesh of her rear, making her flush redder and redder with every intimate caress. And shudder with every light scratch of his nails.  
   
Slowly inching forward, Draco was now pressed intimately up against the curve of her ass, nudging at her entrance gently and drawing back slowly before more than the ridged head of his length could slide passed her wet lips.  
   
Draco was beginning to roll his hips faster and deeper and all she could focus on was the delicious sensations of his rigid cock, sliding through her drenched walls, drawing back before he pushed too deep. It was driving her mad.  
   
Eventually Hermione had begun to unconsciously rock back into his thrusts, bringing him deeper inside each time, she bit her lip against the groan, begging to slip out. Draco was still stroking her ass in a rhythmic pattern with every drive of his hips, the drag of his palms on her flesh coming harder, his fingers gripping her backside with an intensity that had her pushing back with every thrust from her awkward splayed position.  
 

Soon he could push no deeper and Draco was filling her to the hilt on every forward thrust of his hips, all the while maintaining that horribly amazing rhythm that made her want to scream.  
   
On his next push inside her, Draco slid one heavy hand off of her ass and up her spine, tangling his fingers in the riot of curls at the base of her skull, tugging back and arching her back off the bed, a visceral hiss escaped her throat to which Draco gave a hard shove of his hips With a low growl.  
   
This seemed to be a trigger event as Draco's overall hold on her body tightened and his thrusts suddenly became brutal. Pumping into her with an animal ferocity, Hermione wailed her pleasure into the air. reaching the hand still currently gripping her ass cheek tightly around to pinch and rub at her hooded clit, Draco yanked back on her hair as his thrusts took on an inhuman pace as he rode her harder and harder.  
   
Hermione's brain had completely left the building as she moaned and writhed as much as she could in her restricted movements, acting completely on instinct, the more she struggled, the more Draco growled and tightened his grip, the more she moaned. After a while she'd been pulled taught and was being fucked impossibly hard.

The stone room filled with the sounds of Hermione's warbled gasps and moans, Draco's intermittent growls, and wet flesh slapping harshly. A stark contrast to the soft warm glow presented by the flickering lights of the fireplace.  
   
After what seemed like an eternity in the limbo of bliss, Hermione felt herself crashing through waves of pleasure in an ocean of sensation, white light once again blinding her vision as her mouth stretched open in a silent scream, Draco shoved into her one last time, bent over and clamped his sharpened teeth into the opposite side of her neck, sending her plummeting into a dark floating abyss.


	16. Chapter 16

**BLAISE**

"So what do you think they're doing in there?" Blaise said to fill the awkward silence of the lounge.

Narcissa slapped him upside the head, "Don’t be crude."

Snickers broke out amongst the Slytherins.

"She's going to be okay isn't she?" Hannah spoke up timidly from her place on the chaise next to Theo. She'd been with them for two months now, unwilling to leave her new safe haven despite the guilt she felt in leaving behind her friends. Theo was able to preoccupy most of her time in his botany lab though and the feelings of guilt were coming less and less.

"Of course she is, dear." Narcissa said gently to the pretty blonde. After her sneaky attempt to see if Hannah would be mated to her son, she had developed a fondness for the soft spoken girl.

"I still can't believe Draco imprinted on _Granger_. That's got to be the most hilarious joke I've ever heard." Pansy drawled from next to the fireplace.

"You're just sore he didn't imprint on you, Pans." Adrian piped in from his place bent over the pool table.

Pansy huffed, "I am _not_. I haven't had feelings for Draco since we were in school. He's turned into a completely different person since he came back. It's unnerving." Nobody replied to her last comment. Though said offhandedly, it was the truth. Since his return to civilisation, Draco had become withdrawn. His usually snarky commentary had come to an almost non existent standstill and his need for social interaction had decreased drastically, he had been spending most of his time in his potions lab. Nobody ever disturbed him when he withdrew to his private rooms, they'd come to learn it was Draco's way of retreating when the world became too much. He had become more helpful in teaching the kids though. He had little patience and only tutored the best and brightest of the bunch but it was still social interaction so nobody questioned him.

  
After another impromptu silence Blaise stood up, "I'm going to go and check on them."

Narcissa gripped his shoulder tightly and pushed him back down, "You will not go near that room Blaise Zabini. I will hex you inside out if I see you creeping anywhere near those doors."

Blaise huffed, "Aren't you the least bit curious if she's murdered him or not?"

"I doubt it." Narcissa trilled nonchalantly, sipping from her wine glass.

"Why? Granger was the smartest witch in our grade. It's not like she wouldn't know how to handle herself if she's lasted this long."

"He has a point." Hannah offered.

Pansy and Daphne sniggered from their corner.

"What's so funny?" Astoria asked innocently.

"Narcissa took both their wands and vanished their clothes before she locked them in the bedroom." Daphne said with a wicked grin, sniggering. Astoria and Hannah blushed, while Adrian and Blaise chortled loudly. Theo gulping down his drink.

" _You didn't._ " Blaise said mirth shinning in his eyes.

Narcissa sniffed delicately, "Of course I did. My son needs that girl and I eventually want grandchildren. I had to take every precaution."

Blaise grinned, "I can't _wait_ to see what happens."


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys so I'm on a steady roll with these chapters. I'm just hoping you'll leave a comment and let me know what you think of the story so far. Is there something you'd like to see happen? Something you'd like explained? I know the time lines might seem a little confusing, in case you need a hand, Draco's first few chapters were written two months before his encounter with Hermione in the woods, while hers started just prior to their meeting. After she wakes up, Draco's timeline skips backwards a year before skipping forward again to line up with Hermione's. I might go back and change it later, but for now I'm feeling the flow.
> 
> Remember to share the love!
> 
> -peace xo

**HARRY**

"What do you mean she's _missing?_ " Ron's voice carried through the kitchens.

"Not so _loud_ Ron!" Ginny huffed.

Harry scratched the back of his head, "She's missing mate. We went to see the Centaurs to find out if they knew what took her and Firenze said that it was some type of creature. It must have wanted something from her because she's still alive, Firenze seemed confident that she'd make it back unscathed."

"So you're just going to sit around and wait to see if she shows up because a _Centaur_ said so?" Ron spat sarcastically as he paced the kitchen.

"Look, we followed every lead we have. She's gone, we can't find her. Firenze said that she'd be back eventually. All we can do is wait." Harry explained.

Ron's face was turning a brilliant shade of red, "That's not good enough, Harry! What if it had been Ginny? _Huh?_ You wouldn't be sitting around here twiddling your thumbs, you'd be out there _looking_ for her!"

With that Ron stormed from the room, slamming the door loudly on his way out.

Ginny rubbed Harry's arm consolingly, "Its not your fault Harry, she'll be back, I know she will. Firenze would have said something if she was going to die, surely."

Harry rubbed a hand over his face, exhausted, "That's just it Gin, I don't know that. Centaurs aren't known for being compassionate. To them it's all one big circle of life."

"Don't give up, Harry. Hermione wouldn't want you to. If she's alive, I'm sure she'll do everything she can to make it back to us."

Placing his hand on top of hers, he whispered, "I hope you're right Gin, I really hope you're right."

 


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys!  
> So I have two new chapters for you. There's an explanation of sorts for why things have played out the way that they have. I know their mating seemed quick but it was for a reason, I promise! Their entire relationship is built on nothing but past discontent at this point. Their physical relationship is the only semi positive thing they have in common and even that is on extremely shaky ground. Draco's using pheromones and a kind of Alpha compulsion to influence Hermione and distract her from what's happened, but please don't think he's raping her. Their relationship up to this point has been a more or less an animalistic one. Had Hermione been completely resistant to the bond she wouldn't have been susceptible to his influence. But if you remember when she woke up with Draco, she put the pieces of the puzzle together in her head and she accepted their situation for what it was. Hermione may be susceptible to Draco's abilities but he is also at her mercy. He has a very real physical connection to her now, keeping her happy and safe is his number one priority. Without out further ado, take a step inside my filthy mind.

**WARNING, SCENES OF EXPLICIT SEXUAL NATURE ARE IN THIS CHAPTER.**

 

**HERMIONE**

The sunlight shinning through the far windows is what woke her. Hermione blinked into awareness as soon as light crept up on her.

Memories of the night before flooded her brain and she stiffened. There was no way in the world it could have been real, but the evidence was overwhelming. There was no denying the heavy arm draped around her waist, or the lean body pressed tightly to her back, _or_ the thick thigh pushed up in between hers.

But it was the throbbing ache at the apex of her thighs that really convinced her.

Hermione crept her hand across the sheets, not daring to move more than a couple of inches at a time. Just when she thought she might be able to pull herself over the edge, one leg dangling at a strange angle, arm outstretched and pulling her slowly, his hold on her tightened, pulling her back from her escape route.

Draco nuzzled into Hermione's neck, making that strange purring noise from the night before. After a few moments Hermione slumped back against her captor, no longer concerned with escape, but when he started to grind his morning wood into her from behind she became alert once more and squeaked.

Draco chuckled into her hair, leaning down to kiss and nip at her neck, purring more intently all the while.

Hermione felt like her entire body was relaxing one muscle at a time, until she was a boneless heap. She gave one last half hearted attempt to pull out of Draco's embrace but he just pulled her back gently, " _Stay_ " He murmured in her ear, running his hands over her skin, every touch like fire, licking across her flesh in a crescendo of sensations.

All she could think about were the feelings building up inside her and that strange purr that was almost hypnotising. Draco slipped his left hand under her waist to reach around and massage her breast, while his right was still wrapped tightly around her torso.

Hermione was drunk on the feelings running through her body, every single one of her senses felt like they were being saturated with desire. When he dropped his hand from her breast she felt like she could have wept from the loss. Acutely aware of the fingers running over her skin until they dropped around to the back of her thigh, gripping it tight before hoisting it in the air. Draco was pressing up behind her as close as possible, lining up their bodies and rocking his hips back to push inside her now wet and pulsing core.

Hermione bit her lip, wincing slightly and biting back a moan as Draco slipped his cock inside her. When he was fully seated and pressed flush up against her, his purring became louder and all the more entrancing.

Draco rocked in and out of her in a slow, steady rhythm. Holding her open by the back of her thigh while he continued with his thrusts.

Hermione felt like she was on the verge of passing out. She imagined for a moment that this is what being high must be like. When Draco licked up her throat to her ear to nibble on her lobe, she trembled. He whispered, "Touch yourself," in a gravelly voice.

Hermione didn't reply, choosing to focus instead on the feelings coursing through her body instead of  _who_  was causing them.

Then she heard his voice again, " **Go on** ".

This time there was a strange inflection in his voice. The command that rang out made her shiver, and without her permission her arms pulled back towards her body and her fingers began to gently caress her breasts.

Draco's hips sped up when she complied with his alpha command. Rocking into her harder and faster from behind, watching her responses intently.

Every roll of Draco's hips was pushing her closer and closer to that elusive high. When he reached around and pinched her clit, Hermione bit her pillow to hold in her moans as liquid ecstasy began pooling in her belly.

Draco ran his nose over the skin of Hermione's throat, slipping his tongue out to lick and suck at the punctured skin before opening his mouth wide and slicing her throat open once more with his sharp incisors as he bit down harshly.

Hermione let out a silent scream as her body locked up, plummeting into euphoria. She floated there in a dream like state while Draco continued to rock into her until he spilt deep inside her with a low groan. Dropping her leg to the bed while he ground into her.  
   
hermione felt the haze beginning to lift as she came back to reality, turning around to face the body tangled up with hers.   
   
"What do you think you're _doing?_ " She snapped, her ire begining to rise along with her lucidity.   
   
"I thought it was rather obvious." Draco drawled, reclining back in the bed and tucking his arms behind his head. Completely bare and on display, seemingly uncaring.  
   
Dragging the silky black sheet up around her armpits to cover her modesty, Hermione stood from the bed, standing over Draco imperiously, studiously keeping her eyes above his waist.  
   
"You can't just  _abduct_  me! I'm a  _person!_ A  _human being!_ What gives you the  _right?"_  
   
Draco watched her calmly through her rant until she was a trembling fuming mess.  
   
"One, I'm not the person who abducted you. That would probably be Blaise or Theo seeing as the last thing I remember before waking up in here was  _smelling_  you. I wasn't exactly in my right mind now, was I? Two, I am sorry if our bonding is displeasing to you, truthfully I would have gone about things with a bit more tact, alas, it seems my mother felt the need to meddle. No doubt our contention stood in the way of her future grandchildren. Three, _this_ gives me the right." When he finished speaking, Hermione felt a sharp tug on the gold thread wrapped around her heart, jolting her.

Blanching, Hermione exclaimed, " _Grandchildren?_ " the blood drained from her face, "I could be _pregnant?"_ She whispered. Looking down at her abdomen, Hermione suddenly felt very light headed, the walls were closing in on her.  
   
Draco stood up and walked leisurely around the bed, Hermione was still lost in a daze when he picked up a lock of her hair sniffing her, "You're not pregnant. I'd be able to smell it. I smell  _everything_. Just like I smelt your arrousal when we were together. You weren't as opposed to what we did as you would have me believe. Although, I guess it is a bit early to tell. I could give you a potion to help prevent anything from happening if you'd like?"

Hermione blinked, "How are you so calm about this? How are you not disgusted that you're forever tied to a  _Mudblood?'_ She sneered, swatting at his fingers still playing with a lock of her hair idly.  
   
Draco smirked, stepping closer to her and running a single finger in an aimless pattern across her collar bones, sending a chill up her spine, "Life is full of lessons, Granger," he whispered, "recently it's taught me a few things." He ran his nose over her cheek, smirking when she flinched back, "The only thing that matters, is right now. Not what's passed or hasn't happened yet. You can't change your past and you'll never be able to really control your future. You _can_ control your present. The present is all we really have, so why not enjoy the ride?"  
   
Hermione looked up into Draco's eyes, looking for answers, " _Doesn't it bother you?_ " She whispered.  
   
He watched her for an indefinite amount of time before answering, "Why? You're my perfect match Granger. Everything inside me is screaming it at me. why should I fight that? I've been fighting my entire life for a disembodied standard that's given me nothing but pain and misery. Now something within me has given me _you_." He reached up to cup his hand under her jaw, whispering, "Aren't you the least bit curious?"  
   
Hermione gulped, blushing red before stepping out of his hold. Tucking the blanket up around her arms she looked at the floor, "While I accept that this has already happened, I don't know if I'm ready to accept  _you_. That might seem harsh but you have to see things from my perspective. I might be physically attracted to you and susceptible to your freaky Veela charms, _don't think I don't know what you did_ , that also doesn't mean I like you  _or_  want you. We have history and I have a life outside this place, a life you've completely trampled over." She shot him an irritated look to which he just smirked, "I'm not saying _no_ , I'm just saying...this is all horribly inconvenient and nightmarish to be honest."

" _Ouch_ , Granger."

Hermione huffed, "Don't expect me to stroke your ego. I'm being completely honest about the way I feel. You were cruel to me at Hogwarts, for years. This weird bond thing doesn't erase any of that."

Draco observed Hermione nonchalantly, she was hunched over with her arms crossed over her chest tightly, glaring. Everything about her body language screamed fear and insecurity.

   
Sighing, he started walking towards a door across the room, still completely naked and uncaring. Hermione stood watching him, unsure what to make of his actions.  
   
Turning, Draco called over his shoulder, "You'll be wanting that potion and a bath, I assume?"  
   
Gritting her teeth, Hermione made to follow him, bunching the sheets in her arms and carrying them around her like a silk cocoon.

When Hermione stepped inside the bathroom to follow him she was taken back by the room they'd now entered, done completely in white marble, it was open and spacious, a vanity lined the wall to her left, a mirror covering the wall above it. Further down was the bath tub. Only it was more of a small pool, built into the floor with a bench around the rim for sitting and at least a dozen dragon head faucets lined the edge of the far side. Draco was crouched, turning multiple random taps that erupted with sweet smelling waters.

Hermione rolled her eyes at the cheesiness of the dragon head faucets. Catching her eye roll, Draco smirked, "Don't judge the tub till you've tried it, Granger. Blaise had the taps installed when I moved in here. If anything, you should be worried about the shower."

Turning her head curiously, Hermione caught sight of the largest shower she'd ever  _seen_ , lining the entire far wall, it had a built in bench seat and some kind of jet heads lining the upper walls, all aimed down towards the centre. But it was the screen that gave her pause. The shower was lined with a clear glass partition. Hermione felt herself begin to redden, she'd  _never_  be able to shower here! The complete lack of privacy left her feeling self conscious as she tucked her blankets around her more securely. Draco chuckled from his position at the taps.

Turning to throw him a glare, Hermione quickly snapped her head back around when she saw he was still completely naked. Chuckling, Draco turned off the taps when the tub was full.

"You can get in the bath now Granger." Huffing, she refused to turn.

"Turn around and close your eyes, then maybe I'll get in." 

"Okay." Chortling some more, he did as she bade, turning his back. When she peeked at him, his bare lily white ass was pointed straight at her, "I don't see what all the fuss is about, it's nothing I haven't seen before up close and personal."

Blushing and ignoring his crude words, Hermione grabbed a white fluffy towel from the end of the vanity, slowly stepping to the edge of the tub, watching him closely to make sure he didn't peek. She dropped her sheet and stepped into the pool, groaning when she was completely submerged in the scented waters.

Turning to face her, Draco walked over to the vanity. Rummaging in a cabinet hidden behind the walled mirror. Hermione shut her eyes and leant her head back against her towel, sighing at the soothing, full body caress of the water.

When she heard Draco's steps approaching her, she frowned and opened one slitted eye as he dropped to the floor beside her.

Huffing, "Can't you at  _least_  cover yourself?" Before snapping her eye shut again.

Chuckling, Draco summoned a towel wandlessly, lifting to tie it around his waist. "You can open your eyes now, Granger."

Peeking through one lid first, she opened her eyes. Draco sat in a reclined position off to her side. A bright blue glass of something sitting next to his thigh, she met his metallic stare, picking up the cup he offered her, "Hangover potion. It won't prevent anything happening in the future but it will purge your body of any foreign matter, it should do the job."

Eyeing him suspiciously, Hermione accepted the glass, sniffing its minty scent before swallowing it whole. It wasn't entirely unpleasant, almost like swallowing mouth wash. That a _Hangover potion_ could prevent pregnancy baffled her. It made sense in an strange way she supposed, kind of like a magical morning after pill. Siting the cup down gingerly on the edge, Hermione turned her full attention to the man reclined beside her.

He was watching her with a detached, indiscernible expression that made her feel like he could see inside her head.

Averting her eyes, she whispered, "Thank you."

"You're welcome, Granger."

"why are you being so nice to me?"

"Because Granger, you belong to me now. And I belong to you. We're both going to need an adjustment period, for what it's worth. I'm glad it's you."

she blanched, "You are?"

"indeed. I could have been stuck with some insipid moron, instead I get the most brilliant witch of our age."

hermione flushed, unwilling to lower her guard, she retorted, "So basically you're happy we're bonded because I'm not an idiot?"

Draco smirked cheekily, "Of course not."

hermione raised her brow, "No?"

His smirk widened, "You're also quite foxy, Granger."

Blushing brightly, she ignored his jab, "And what about all those pheromones you were smothering me in? And when you _told_ me to, you know.." she gestured to her chest with her arms and Draco snickered, "I did it. I didn't make the decision, I just did it. Was that some sort of mind crontrol? Are you planning on doing it again?" She finished fearfully.

Draco softened, "Of course not Granger, it's instinctual. I could do it to others too, if I liked, it's more of a powerful form of suggestion. The stronger the mind is, the harder it is to compel them. I'm only able to compel you because of our bond. I'll admit, I was still ruled by my urges to an extent this morning and I wanted to play with you. I apologise if I made you uncomfortable. Know that I'd never be able to compel you with malicious intent. I only wanted to make you feel good. It's all I want in a way."

Hermione was unable to look Draco in the eyes and see the honesty of his words. She was so overwhelmed by everything that had happened she had the very real urge sob. She didn't hate Draco, but she wasn't sure if she liked him either. She really had no idea who this man sitting in front of her was, he was so different from everything she knew in school.

Hermione looked back up to see that he was still watching her, she didn't know why she suddenly felt so skittish after everything that had happened, she was normally the bold one. But for some reason, her tongue was in knots. 

 _Screw this_. She thought angrily, drawing on her Gryffindor courage, she lifted her eyes to meet Draco's defiantly. She was surprised though, when she saw the mirth in his cold greys.

"Are you angry again, little lion?"

Hermione flushed, _he was treating everything like a game!_ She didn't know what had happened to the whiney Draco Malfoy of her youth, but he was gone. In his place was a sardonic, sarcastic, laconic man with a detached disposition. She was getting mental whiplash from the insanity of the last two days.

"I just realised. I have no idea who you are," she drew her knees up under her chin as her anger simmered, "You're nothing like you were in school. You're littered with scars, some a lot older than others." She looked him in the eyes, "Who _are_ you? What happened to you Draco?"

It was the first time she'd used his first name in conversation and it didn't feel as strange as she thought it would. Meanwhile, Draco watched her with detached grey orbs, "Another time perhaps. I'll leave you to your bath. The waters have soothing and healing properties, so you should feel fine soon." Hermione flushed, "I will come back and collect you for breakfast shortly, I'm sure you're famished."

Hermione hadn't notice until that point in time, but she was starving. Before she could reply to his words, Draco had risen up from his place next to the pool and left the room. Leaving her alone with her thoughts.


	19. Chapter 19

**DRACO**

After changing into a fresh set of clothes, Draco left the bedroom he'd been sequestered in with Hermione for the most part of two days. He was reeling over events, this imprint left him at a loss. Of late, he'd found less and less need for social interactions, preferring the solitude of his potions lab and the repetitive dichotomy of study, trial and error.

People rubbed him the wrong way, trying to make small talk about things he truly didn't care about was a past time that left him even more so detached. That was different now though. A big part of him was invested and obsessed with the curly haired witch in his bathroom. He could feel his ties to her like a pulsing, living being. Separate from himself, it whispered to his soul, filling him with foreign emotions he wasn't sure he wanted but was unwilling to turn his back on. The golden thread connecting them was thrumming with energy, he mentally gave it a sharp tug. Feeling her shock reverberating back to him. Smirking, he made his way to the lounge where he knew his friends to be, one of few occasions he welcomed their inane questions, if only to avoid all the questions rolling around in his own mind.

Pushing the doors open, all conversation ceased as Draco stepped into the room. Strolling over to the bar casually, he leaned over and kissed his mother on the forehead gently before making his way around the counter to mix himself a drink.

Everyone watched him as he poured himself a firewhiskey in silence, taking a drink before raising his eyes, levelling the room of onlookers with a blank expression and a raised brow.

"Is Granger dead?" Blaise asked tactlessly as everyone listened on eagerly.

Taking another slow drink before answering, "No, she's not dead, she's taking a bath."

"So you've consummated the bond then?" Narcissa asked, sipping delicately from her wine glass.

Draco narrowed his pale eyes, "I suppose I have you to thank for that do I?"

Narcissa shrugged innocently, "It was the smartest course Draco, truly. I knew when you woke you'd still be in full swing of the imprint. And you know your health would have suffered drastically had you waited. I had a decision to make and I made it."

Draco levelled her with a hard stare, gulping down the rest of his drink before speaking, "I know and I appreciate that you were thinking of my wellbeing."

Narcissa took a dainty sip of her wine, "Does your intended plan on joining us sometime soon?"

Blaise snorted into his drink and Theo snickered. Hannah scowled at Blaise from her perch next to Theo. Daphne, Pansy and Astoria sat, watching everything play out avidly from the lounge. Adrian seemed completely disinterested as he read a book in an armchair.

Draco gave his mother a small smirk, "My _intended_ is very cross with me. I think I should probably feed her first, before she starts roaring at me."

" _Une Vraie Lionne_?" Narcissa trilled.

"Indeed." Draco replied.

The girls all giggled coquettishly, hilariously entertained by Draco's current affairs. Blaise watched him with open fascination and Theo and Hannah were talking quietly amongst themselves. His mother, on the other hand, was inspecting her nails intently. Studiously avoiding his gaze.

"Mother?" She hummed in acknowledgement, "I think it's only fair that you know I gave Hermione a Hangover potion this morning."

Draco watched as the wheels slowly turned in Narcissa's mind as she processed his words, when it finally clicked and comprehension dawned, she became furious, " _Draco Malfoy!_ You _will_ be giving me my grand babies one way or another, whether you like it or _not!"_ She stood huffing, swallowing the rest of her drink before rising from her perch gracefully.

Turning, she gestured, "Come girls, it’s a lovely day for tea in the gardens." Leaving without a backward glance, the women in the room stood up and trailed out after Narcissa Malfoy one at a time. Closing the door behind them firmly.

Blaise and Theo looked at each other blankly before looking back at Draco who had poured himself another drink and was staring unseeingly into space.

"Did your mother really try to get you to knock up Granger?" Theo asked into the silence.

The men in the room all looked to Draco for his answer, "She's manic. Losing me would do that to a person." He smirked, gulping back his whiskey, "She's afraid that she's going to be left alone again. She's still not over losing me the first time. She didn't go out of her way to ensure a pregnancy, but she sure as shit didn't do anything to prevent one either." Draco gulped back the rest of his drink, hissing through the burn.

" _Mate_. That's messed up." Theo said, taking a large swig straight from the bottle.

Draco shrugged, "It is, what it is."

"Did she really leave you and Granger locked up naked in your bedroom?" Blaise spoke in a rush like he'd been dying to ask.

Draco smirked, "She did."

"And Granger didn't try to kill you?"

"On the contrary, she was quite receptive to me." Draco said, taking his own pull from the bottle.

"She let you touch her? Just like that?"

Draco shot Blaise an amused look, "No. Not ' _just like that_.' I'd smelled her scent for the first time and then suddenly, I was waking up with her,  _naked_. My brain left the building at that point. I was running on pure instincts. Mother was banking on that, but she didn't just want me to sleep with Granger to procreate. She did it because she didn't want me to become mentally unstable."

Adrian, who had been listening avidly from his place on the couch spoke for the first time, "What do you mean?"

Draco's eyes flickered towards the dirty blonde in the chair, "The texts say when Veela males come into contact with their bond mates, they become mentally unhinged until the bond is sealed. Mother probably feared for my health after everything she thinks I've been through and wanted to spare me the excess pain."

The men in the room grew solemn at those words. None of the people living at The Plantation had really gotten over his disappearance. It had been like learning to live without a part of yourself you never knew you'd miss until it was gone.

Draco stood, "I best go and fetch Granger, before she tries to use the sheets to climb out the window."

Several sniggers could be heard as Draco left the lounge and made his way back through the halls to his _intended_. Chuckling to himself, Draco was eager for came next in a way he never had been before. It was exhilarating.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There you have it. I'll post the next chapters as soon as I get a chance to edit the drafts, let me know what you think of Draco and Hermione's interactions so far. 
> 
> -peace xo
> 
> P.S "Une Vraie Lionne" is French for, "A true lioness".


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Just letting you know I've got the next several chapters written. I'd already prewritten a lot of scenes that I knew I wanted in this story and I've been able to edit a lot of it into what I've written.
> 
> I've got a solid goal for where this story is headed, stay with me!

**LUNA**

Everyone had been slightly morose since Hermione's sudden departure and it baffled Luna. Firenze had told Harry that Hermione would return. Centaurs don't lie, she didn't understand why everyone was acting like she had _died_.

Walking into the library to find a good book, the Black Library was huge and always had something new and interesting to read.

When she walked in, she found Harry and Ginny sitting, drinking tea with Professor McGonnagal. Harry's bottle green eyes shot to her in surprise, his unkept jet black hair making his features a lot more distinct in his maturity. The stubble lining his jaw made him look a little older than he was, as well. Ginny was poised in her adulthood, with an almost waist length braid of red hair laying her over shoulder and sharp, cobalt eyes observed Luna with an easy friendliness. Luna had always liked Ginny very much, she was always nice to her. Even in school, she would sit and eat her lunch with Luna next to the black lake on sunny days, chatting aimlessly about one topic or another. She had been Luna's first real friend.

Professor McGonagall however, looked the same as ever and regarded her shrewdly, she had never been overly fond of Luna. Her quirks and mannerisms seemed to rub the Transfiguration teacher the wrong way.

"Hello Luna, what are you up to?" Ginny asked in her lilting voice.

Luna turned her pale blue vacant gaze back to Ginny, "oh, I'm just looking for a new book to read. I've already finished _remedies of the moste insane_ , it was quite intriguing."

Harry suddenly bent down and quickly brought his cup to his mouth taking a long slow sip of his tea. Ginny narrowed her eyes at him, while Professor McGonnagal ignored their interaction in favour of Hermione's cat Crookshanks, who had slunk into the room and jumped up on the couch, scratching the orange cat under its squashed up face.

"That's really interesting Luna, would you like to join us for a cup of tea? Maybe we can help you find a new book to read."

Luna smiled, "That would be lovely." Luna floated over and took a seat beside Ginny on the sofa, already leaning forward to pour herself a cup.

"Ugh, Luna?" Harry chimed awkwardly.

"Yes, Harry?"

"Why don't you sit with the professor? There's plenty of room on that couch." McGonagall shot Harry a small glare to which he ducked his head, avoiding her eyes.

"Oh, that's okay Harry. I make Professor McGonagall uncomfortable, and Crookshanks would have to move from his spot."

Professor McGonagall coughed lightly, taking a sip of her tea. Ginny glared at Harry and Crookshanks meowed in Luna's direction, as if to acknowledge her kind act in not unseating him.

"So Luna, we were just talking about maybe paying the centaurs another visit, if Hermione isn't back soon. They might be willing to tell us something more about what's happened to her." Ginny supplied.

"Oh, I don't know about that Ginny, Centaurs aren't very generous. They usually prefer an exchange. Maybe if you were to offer them something they really wanted, they'd be more open to discussing Hermione. I wouldn't expect too many answers though, Centaurs only see what the stars have shown them." Luna's soft voice had a ringing ominous tone that leant a mystique to her overall demeanour.

"That's exactly what Firenze said to me. When he came to me in the forest." Harry exclaimed, leaning forward eagerly with an exited gleam in his eyes, "Luna, what would a Centaur want? What would they consider valuable or precious enough to tell us what we want to know?"

"Oh, I'm not sure, Harry. Centaurs have no need for material things. Maybe if you offered them something that would hold their interest? They follow whatever the stars say, how about a nice telescope? I'm sure they would appreciate being able to see them a little better."

The three of them looked at Luna like they were struck dumb. They'd been puzzling over what to do about Hermione, and Luna had just given them a place to start without any real thought.

"Luna, I think I could kiss you." Harry said, grinning widely.

"Oh, I don't think that's a very good idea. It would probably make Ginny very angry, Harry."

Laughing, Harry grabbed Ginny and kissed her hard before standing up and bounding out of the room.

"I suppose I better go and inform the others of this new development."Mcgonagall said, bidding them goodbye and sweeping out of the room.

Ginny and Luna sat, tea cups in hand. "So, Luna, what kind of book were you hoping to find?" Ginny asked in a daze.

"Oh, maybe something a little less morbid than the last one. Magical creatures, perhaps? That seems like a good topic to read up on now." With that Luna skipped around the room, humming a tune to herself, all the while Ginny sat and sipped her tea in bemused silence.


	21. Chapter 21

**HERMIONE**

Once Hermione felt like every inch of her body had pruned, she got out of the bath. Standing up from the water and picking up her towel to dry herself off. She tied it around her chest, blushing as she leant down to pick up her discarded black sheet.

Walking back into the bedroom she was met with not Draco, but the most adorable House Elf she had ever laid eyes on. Powder blue, with large lilac eyes and a silky silver pillow, she stood wringing her hands nervous by the end of the bed.

Dropping the sheet, Hermione stepped forward and leant down, "Hello, my name is Hermione Granger, I'm very pleased to make your acquaintance, and you are?"

She made sure to keep her hands to herself and word herself carefully. She'd come to learn she would never be able to make the changes she wanted for House Elves if she didn't learn how to speak their language.

The little Elf's eyes widened to comic proportions when she stammered, in a tiny voice, "I's is Whispy miss, I's is The Masters personal Elf. I's is looking after the Master and his friends."

Hermione smiled gently, "Who is your master, Whispy? Draco?"

The Elf's large ears flapped as she shook her head vigorously, "I's is Master Blaise's personal Elf, I's is his nanny when he's is small Missus." She said proudly, puffing out her chest.

Hermione was bemused, she was in _Blaise Zabini's house?_ "That's lovely Whispy, I'm sure you've done a magnificent job in helping raise him. I don't suppose, you'd be able to help me find some clothes though, would you?"

Whispy gasped, "I's is sorry miss! Miss must be so cold!" The elf rushed into a door off on the side wall Hermione hadn't seen, promptly slamming it behind her. Hermione could hear the Elf rummaging around for a moment before she came racing back out with what looked to be a baby blue, long sleeved, floor length dress styled robes. Hermione ran her hand out to touch the soft silky material when Whispy rushed it over to her.

"It's very pretty." Hermione murmured.

Whispy beamed, "Miss is trying it on now! Miss must get ready for breakfast!" Suddenly the elf was shoving her towards the bathroom insistently until she walked over and closed the door.

Sighing, she looked down at the material in her hands. It was beautiful. Dropping her towel, Hermione began to pulling it on. Once she'd gotten it over her shoulders, she pulled the catch at the side around to the cinch at her waist. Looking in the mirror she hardly recognised herself. Gone were the purple bags under her eyes from sleep depravity and her skin seemed to shine with a pearlescent glow. Leaning forward to inspect herself better, Hermione was caught staring at the deep 'V' of her dress, blushing, she looked back up at her face. Her eyes shined a bright gold colour and her cheeks had a healthy pink tinge. Her coffee coloured skin was illuminated by an almost unnoticeable glow that seemed to radiate under her skin.

It was then she also noticed the bite marks, several incisor shaped bites littered both side of her neck. She felt a strange stirring in her chest when she looked at them, and pulled her hair forward, to take out her braid. Letting her hair fall in long waist length ringlets around her head, covering up the marks.

Taking a deep breathe, she walked back into the bedroom only to this time be faced with Draco leaning against the canopy.

Running his eyes up and down her frame, Hermione felt herself begin to flush. The way he was looking at her was in surprised appreciation and it made her feel like squirming.

"You look lovely, little lion. Shall we?" He held out his hand towards the doors and Hermione took a deep breath before walking forward, back straight and chin up, refusing to be intimidated.

Draco chuckled, following close behind her and closing the door gently.

He lead her through so many twists and turns Hermione had become dizzy. She had no idea how big this place was and its unknown enormity was bewildering.

After a flight of stairs he led her around one more turn before stopping before a set of doors and pushing them open gently.

Hermione peeked inside and came face to face with the prettiest room she'd ever seen. Done completely in whites and pale yellows, to complement the light stone walls, a gilded window took up the entire far wall. Over stuffed White chaise lounges were scattered about the room with small, white oak tables.

The whole room was lit up brilliantly with the morning light and Hermione stepped inside entranced, Draco standing back and watching as she took in the sunlit room.

Walking over to the window, Hermione saw the most vivid array of colour she'd ever seen in her life! In front of her was a maze of multi coloured beauty amongst bright greenery in a garden stretching beyond her line of sight. To the left was Fields of green grass, trees littered here and there with a back drop of crystal blue waters on the horizon. She could make out the tiny figures of children playing in the distance. Unable to count them as some of them were whizzing around on broomsticks, too fast for her tell.

Turning to Draco who was observing her quietly she whispered in amazement, "What is this place?"

Stepping over to the lounges, he gestured for her to take a seat before sitting down himself.

"This is The Plantation. A remote island completely protected from the outside world. Muggles can't see us and Wizards cannot find us. We've collected quite a few wayward souls in our time here."

"And Blaise Zabini, owns it?"

He looked at her amused, "Indeed. The Plantation has been in his family since the time of the romans. Technically, it still belongs to his mother, Elenore. But he will inherit it on her death."

Mind whirling with this new information, she was astounded that something so old was still in such perfect condition. _Magic,_ She mused, _is an amazing thing_. Watching him intently, Hermione had a million questions ready to slip off her tongue when Draco shot her a look, "Time for questions, I promise. First you need to eat something." Clicking his fingers, Whispy appeared with a loud crack.

"What is Master Draco and Miss wanting to eat?" Whispy squeaked.

Turning to Hermione with a raised brown she fluttered, "Oh, um. Some fruit would be lovely, Whispy. And maybe some toast?"

The elf nodded eagerly, "Some tea too, if you would, Whispy." Draco intoned, never taking his eye from the curly haired witch in front of him.

The elf cracked out of existence and the two sat observing each other. Both waiting for the other to speak. Hermione cracked first.

"Why are there so many people living here?"

Draco levelled her with a stare, Whispy cracking back into the room with trays of various fruits and spreads, several slices of butter, with some plates and Draco's requested tea. Placing it all down gently on the table in front of them, Whispy squeaked, "Is Master Draco and the Miss wanting anything else?"

"That will be all, Whispy." Draco replied, once again keeping his eyes on Hermione. With a ear clapping nod she vanished once more.

It's quite a long story Granger." He replied, once the Elf had left.

Picking up a grape and popping it in her mouth, Hermione reclined back in her chair, getting comfortable, "We have time."

He levelled her with a heavy look. Taking a sip of his tea before answering, "I Guess I best start at the beginning then."


	22. Chapter 22

**DRACO**

_Threes years ago. The battle of Hogwarts...._

There was an explosive wave of energy that threw everyone in the castle to the ground. Draco grunted when he was slammed in the gut and thrown down by his mother and father. People scattered everywhere in the Great Hall in a perfect circle around the two unconscious wizards in the centre. Ginny Weasley was the first to step forward. Slowly, she walked up behind Harry Potters slumped form and leant down to feel his pulse. There were protests being yelled at her but she ignored them all. Breathing through her mouth, she looked up eyes shining, "He's Alive!"

Shouts began to run out before Draco's father stepped forward, almost cringing as he leant in close, waving his wand, light blue wisps rose into the air in front of his mouth. "The Dark Lord, lives!" He yelled.

The Great Hall exploded in panic, people rushing to get out, others clambering to help one of the fallen wizards in the middle of the room.

Draco's eyes locked on his father who was currently casting an enervate on The Dark Lord.

Rounding on his mother, Narcissa was covered in bits of dirt and her up-kept coif of hair was falling out in wispy ringlets around her head. He grabbed her shoulders, squeezing hard.

"We have to go, Mother."

Narcissa looked at her son with a vacant expression, eyes flickering to her husband fearfully and back up to her sons pale grey eyes, she nodded slowly, whispering. "Get me out of here, Draco."

Reaching down and grasping her hand tightly, Draco pulled his mother through the ensuing chaos, pushing through the running and fighting people. Careful to keep his mother in his sights at all times.

They'd made it through the bulk of the bodies and were now making a mad dash through the halls, running without a backward glance. Finally, he'd led her down to the dungeons, leading her to the Slytherin common room.

"Draco, what are we doing down here?" Narcissa asked breathlessly as she clutched onto her son's arm tightly.

"You'll see mother, I have a friend, he's going to help us."

Knocking on the wall in an odd pattern, the stones slid back and opened into a passage, a young gangly boy with black hair and brown eyes looked up at them fearfully. "Is it safe to come out now?"

Draco gripped his mothers hand and stepped forward, pushing the boy further inside, "No kid, it's not."

Walking into the common room piled up with almost the entirety of Slytherin House, Draco stepped over to two young men, sitting in armchairs by the fire. One was Theo Nott, pale skinned and dark haired, muddy green with a lightly stubbled jaw. He was quite broad in the chest making him look at bit larger than he actually was. The other was Blaise Zabini, aqua marine eyes set in a deep Carmel skin. His hair was cut close to his head, giving him an overall exotic look. Approaching them with apprehension and a tight grip on his mothers hand, Draco spoke. "Blaise, we… _we need to go_."

Blaise looked up, grasping the arms of his chair tightly, his knuckles turning white. Daphne sitting across from him had bitten her lip and grasped her sisters' hand tightly. Olive skinned and light blonde hair. Almost identical in appearance, the sisters only physical differences were Daphnes superior height and that she had bright green eyes while Astoria had a pale blue. Theo had slumped in his chair and took a long swig of whiskey from a flask.  
   
Blaise closed his eyes and took a deep breathe before standing, everyone's attention diverted from Draco and Narcissa's arrival to Blaise, unsure on whom to focus. Blaise raised his wand and waved it in a series of whirls and slashes towards the common room entrance. All around, the sounds of stone sliding and clapping together rang throughout the room until Blaise lowered his wand and looked about gravely.  
   
 "The Dark Lord remains undefeated." He spoke flatly, it took a moment for the chorus of shouts to begin.  
   
"Is Potter dead?!"  
   
"Did the Dark Lord kill him?"  
   
"Are we safe in here???"  
   
 The shouts rang out over and over until Blaise raised his wand and silenced the room.  
   
Before anything could be said Draco stepped forward, "The dark lord did not kill Potter," he looked about the room gravely, feeling slightly ill, "but Potter did not kill him either, their wands exploded in some kind of magical bomb and took out a shit load of people outside the castle," his mother elbowed him, "the war is not over, if we stay here we will either be recruited to torture, kill and die for a crazy half bloods cause or we will be tortured and killed for a crazy half bloods cause, the choice is yours."

Draco stepped back at this point and Blaise took the floor, looking to the openly angry faces obviously trying to curse them out.  
   
"My mother never declared a side in this war," he looked around, staring everyone in the eye as he went on, "and I will not. Class, is a history that should be valued and respected, treated with dignity. Not fighting for scraps in a mad world, subject to disgusting acts one wouldn't do to a dog, let alone those we have considered peers."  
   
People were looking around the room questioningly now, wondering where this speech was going, "This is the modern world ladies and gentlemen, and so we must adjust to a modern time or wither away and die on the vine along with our history and traditions. _Or_ perish along with our parents who seem intent on sending themselves into early graves with a madman's war".  
   
He looked at them hard, "Myself and several others have developed a contingency plan in case of mass hysteria," at this Narcissa looked at Draco with open surprise, "we will be leaving Hogwarts, and Britain, in favour of more calm accomodations, anyone here is welcome to come with us on the condition that you will not be returning. This is a one time offer, but an offer none the less. Stay here and become a victim of the darkness and insanity that has consumed your forbears, fight with The Order for a better future," Blaise chuckled ironically, they all knew what the orders better future would bring, and it was NOT equality for all. " _or_ you can come with us, we will rebuild, we will reform, we will unite, we will fight for our standing in history. Our heritage will remain strong, not succumbed to a madman's inane quest to kill a fucking kid, and not stamped out by the resentment of those too ignorant to appreciate our histories."  
   
Blaise had stepped back clapping Draco on the back as he stood at his side, his mother slightly off to the back was looking at him with the a glow of pride that made his broken heart feel whole. The loss of his father was still a present and painful sting that left him feeling hollow, but looking at his mother in that moment, while Blaise and Theo organised the younger children with the help of their peers, packing and organising their belongings, it made him feel like he could survive the loss. He _would_ survive it.  
   
Blaise was comforting a young golden haired girl who was clutching the forearm of a sandy haired boy on her right, whispering in her ear. Draco looked down, "What's wrong?"  
   
Blaise looked up with a painful expression, making Draco's heart clench briefly as he waited to hear his words, "This is Amelia, she's a second year, her sisters still at home, she's only ten, not due for Hogwarts until next year."  
    
The girl sniffled as the boy continued whispering in her ear while Draco processed the information. Theo had wandered over and was listening at his shoulder.  
   
Coming to only one conclusion, Draco closed his eyes. It seemed they weren't going to be completely through with Britain just yet, after all.  
   
Crouching down he looked in the girls eyes, "Stop crying, you've got to be strong for you sister, what's her name?"  
   
The girl slowed her heaving and looked at Draco, the boys around them watching intently to observe the outcome, "Abigail." The girl sniffed, wiping her nose on her sleeve.  
   
Draco grimaced, _filthy_. "You're Tomas Avery's kid right?" Here the girl nodded, her golden curls bouncing, "Tomas isn't as active as a lot of supporters, in fact he's down right docile in comparison. If you don't want to be with him though, and you want to bring you sister with you, you'll have to stay here first and go back home," The girl's eyes widened, frightened, unwilling to stay, but unwilling to leave her sister behind, "When term begins in the new year, we'll come for you." Her eyes were widened to comic proportions, " We'll make a plan and we'll take you and your sister away and bring you both with us. You'll be safe, your sister will be safe, all you have to do is keep the secret, keep her safe until the right moment, then we'll be there to do it for you. Can you do that, Amelia?" Draco looked into her eyes, searching them intently for her answer, when her eyes hardened in determination, he smirked.  
   
And thus, their illegal smuggling and kidnapping ring had been born.


	23. Chapter 23

**HERMIONE**

_Present day._

 "That's the whole story really. We headed back to Hogwarts soon after the beginning of term each year and we smuggled the kids back here. We convinced an older kid to stick around and find the first years that wanted out. A few of the older students who stayed behind knew what was happening but I don't think any of them ever told anyone. At least, none of them did until Liam's brother." Draco finished.

Hermione sat back, wide eyed and overwhelmed at the story she'd just been told. She didn't quite know whether to believe it, but somehow looking around her and seeing this place for what it was, she knew it to be true.

Still dazed, "Liam?" She asked.

Draco was watching her closely, "Maybe you'd like a break?"

She shook her head to clear away the fuzz, "No, tell me, I want to know."

He looked her in the eyes, speaking softly, "Its not a pleasant story."

"Life isn't really pleasant these days." She said dryly.

He shot her an amused glance, "Alright," he shifted forward, facing her head on, "we'd been collecting students from the school for a little over two years. The third year round, we had a third year Ravenclaw, he'd stuck around waiting for his little brother to be sent off to school with him before he left. His little brother was sorted into Slytherin. He was scared, terrified of his own shadow. Who could blame him though? The Dark Lord has open control of the government and The Order isn't exactly getting things done." He ignored her glare and continued, "Luka and his little brother Liam had an older brother, Logan."

Draco leaned back in his chair, his eyes unseeing, "Liam went to Logan and begged him to come with him and Luka, he refused. He hadn't known about us smuggling the kids out, any of the older students who already knew kept it to themselves. They didn't want to begrudge the little ones a safe place, I think. So, Logan went to his professors and told them of his little brothers plans. They didn't know when it was happening but they knew that it would be soon. They'd stationed watchers all around the grounds of the castle, I don't think any of them realised we'd be using a hidden passage. That we came from the forest was also an advantage. It may have been the only thing that saved them that day."

Hermione looked at Draco, holding her breath, "Them?"

He looked at her indifferently, "I was captured. I was held prisoner in the Hogwarts dungeons for ten months before a friend was captured as well and helped me escape."

Hermione was looking at Draco in shocked silence, her mind suddenly flashing with images of all the scars she'd noticed littered sporadically across his porcelain skin. Feeling slightly ill, she whispered, "What about your father? Why didn't he help you?"

Draco looked at her coldly now, "My father is a lonely coward and will die as such."

The total indifference in his tone told Hermione there was more to that story, but she felt she'd prodded him enough for one sitting.

Sitting back now she reached for something to say to lighten the atmosphere, "What's your favourite colour?" She blurted.

He blinked, "White."

She frowned, "White isn't a colour." Draco raised a brow, "Its a shade. It doesn't count."

"Black?"

"Shade."

He frowned, "I guess I've never really thought about it, if I had to pick a colour," he shot her a smirk, "I'd probably have to say, gold."

Heemione blinked. "Gold?" She said dumbly.

"Its the colour of your eyes." He said offhandedly.

Hermione flushed, Draco was so noncommittal about everything, she never knew what his reaction would be or what he was going to say next.

Something occurred to her suddenly, " _Where_ is my wand?"

Draco sighed, "Probably with mine."

Hermione noticed for the first time that Draco did indeed, not have a wand either.

"And where pray tell, are they?"

He looked at the ceiling, "With my mother I assume."

Hermione stood from the chaise, "Well in that case, we can kill two birds with one stone." He raised his brow, "We can retrieve our wands and I can meet the woman who stole my virtue."

Draco smirked, "If you insist, little lion."

Hermione shot him a glare as he rose from his seat, "Well? Where is she?"

He walked towards the doors before answering her, "In the gardens most like, feeding her little ducklings."

Hermione followed him out, trailing behind him as he led the way. "Your mother keeps ducks?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So what are we thinking so far? drop me a line ;) xo


	24. Chapter 24

**NARCISSA**

 

"Remember my little ducklings, swans mate for life. You don't want to be fourty and depressed after eight divorces."

"Whose depressed, you old shrew?"

Narcissa threw the dark featured woman sitting across from her a baleful glare, "Elenore is obviously an exception to that rule, the world is always going to have its Black Widows, spinning their webs."

Elenore Zabini raised her wine glass in a toast to Narcissa mockingly, before taking a large drink of her wine. Dressed in a flowing black silk gown with red trimmings. Contrasted with her dark hair and eyes, Elenore had a distinctly Spanish appearance.

The young girls scattered about with their tea cups in chaise lounges watched the two matriarchs sparring intently. Watching the matrons verbally duke it out was a frequently entertaining passed time.

When Narcissa caught sight of her son strolling towards them in black robes and a pretty young thing with curly brunette hair in a baby blue dress at his side, she gave a small jump in excitement.

"Oh, look! Draco's brought his lovely belle to come and greet us."

All chatter stopped as the odd couple entered the sitting area amongst all the flowers and greenery. Draco gently led Hermione forward by her elbow, coming to a stop in front of the striking platinum blonde woman, she instantly recognised as Draco's mother.

"Mother, this is Hermione Granger. Hermione, this is my Mother, Narcissa Malfoy. The lush at the other end of the table is Blaise's mother, Elenore Zabini."

"Don't you call _me_ a lush you little brat. I'm a sommelier of fine wines."

"I don't see you pouring anyone a drink, Elenore." Draco drawled.

Elenore sniffed. "Of course not, this wine is far too good for the under developed palettes of these juvenile, little ducks."

Narcissa intervened quickly, "What brings the two of you out here on this fine day?"

Draco's gaze slowly slid to his mother, "Hermione was hoping you'd be so kind as to return our wands?"

Narcissa held her son's stare as she reached into her skirt pockets noncommittally before stretching out her hand, holding the two wands for out for her son with a serene look.

Draco reached out, grasping the wands, he handed over Hermione's to her before pocketing his own. Just as taciturn as Narcissa.

"Thank you, Mother."

Draco made to lead Hermione back into the house and Narcissa couldn't bear it! She wanted to meet her new daughter in law properly.

"Draco, you bring that girl back here and have some tea with your mother, _right now_."

Draco looked at Hermione questioningly, she nodded her head slowly before he led her over to the chaise lounges Narcissa had placed amongst the plant life.

"Your garden is very beautiful, Mrs Malfoy." Hermione said she as sat down on the chaise as gracefully as she could.

Narcissa beamed while Elenore snorted, "Its my garden dear, she just lives in it." Gesturing with her glass to the fuming Narcissa.

"I put my heart and soul into creating and maintaining this Garden Elenore, its _mine!_ "

Hermione seemed quite flummoxed by the turn of events while Draco almost seemed bored. The girls around the garden were all paying close attention when one in the crowd stood up and stepped over to Hermione hesitantly.

"Hermione?"

The witch in question turned, looking up to see Hannah Abbott standing by her.

" _Hannah!_ What are you _doing_ here?!" She got up and quickly rushed to give the blonde girl a hug. Draco watched the scene seemingly indifferent, while Narcissa observed the girl in front of her intently.

She was quite pretty. Her hair was a gorgeous and chaotic riot of curls. Tall with a slim figure, and milky skin. Yes she was quite lovely, Narcissa mused, now she would have to figure out what kind of person this girl was. If anything her little ducklings had to say was true, Hermione Granger was a kind and formidable witch indeed.

"I was held captive with Draco, he helped me escape, and well, here I am." The blonde threw her hands up with a shrug. Hermione looked to Draco quickly who shrugged in turn. There was something going on there, Narcissa noted.

Hermione still had a firm grip on her friends hand, like a life line. She pulled her down into the seat on her other side as the chatter began to rise up once again.

They'd been swapping pleasantries for a while when a sudden lull in the conversation left everyone unsure on what to say.

Elenore who had been appraising Hermione, commented offhandedly to Narcissa, "she's a pretty little thing isn't she?"

" _She_ is flattered that you would say so." Hermione quipped back quickly.

Elenore stared at her for a moment before smiling widely and trilling off a bell like laugh, "Oh, I _like_ her Cissa, we _must_ keep her."

"Hermione is quite an accomplished young witch I've been told, I couldn't have picked a better partner for you, Draco." Narcissa said delicately.

Hermione jolted in surprise, Narcissa Malfoy had been nothing but accomodating to her since her arrival in the gardens, but she hadn't anticipated that it would extend beyond that. That she had spoken so highly of her to one of her pureblood friends meant a great deal. She hadn't fully accepted Narcissa's acceptance of her thus far until she'd seen some unquestionable proof of it.

Hermione sipped her tea and chatted aimlessly, shedding her anxiousness and falling into easy conversation over tea, she felt the most normal she had in months.

Narcissa smiled smugly at her son who was leant back in his chair watching the scene unfolding with mild amusement.


	25. Chapter 25

**HARRY**

  
"We're ready, Harry." Ginny quipped from the doorway to the sitting room.

Harry, who had been mid conversation with Kingsley and Hagrid, excused himself quickly, marching around the corner to see the group ready and assembled. Ginny, Oliver, Dean, Katie and Ron were all sitting about the room in varying degrees of conversation. They all stopped and looked up at Harry's entrance.

"Okay guys, we're making one more trip to see the Centaurs. They know something about Hermione and we're hoping if we give them something they want they'll be willing to part with that information."

Before he could go on, Luna walked through the doors, platinum hair tied in long plaited pig tails, dressed in overalls and what looked like bright red gum boots.

"I'm ready to go, Harry."

"What?" Ginny asked in confusion.

Harry shrugged, scratching his head, "She's kind of genius, isn't she? Might come in handy."

Ginny just smiled brightly, "I hope you're ready for camping, Luna."

"Oh, I used to go camping all the time with Daddy. It's the only way he could track the wrackspurt nests you see."

Every one there shared the usual side glances that were given whenever Luna was in a room.

They'd been in the forest back tracking their last trek for several hours when they decided to stop and set up camp by the river, the same place Harry had encountered Firenze.

Sitting around the camp fire, the group of young freedom fighters were treated to a rare moment of normalcy. Granted they were sleeping in tents and eating dry rations, but it was still something regular from a time passed. The group of friends sat around laughing and telling stories. Harry felt a pang in his chest when he noticed Ron and Ginny were playing a game of exploding snap. Hermione should be here, he thought, she would know exactly what to do.

Looking up at the night sky, Harry prayed silently to whatever deity might be listening amongst the stars for his friends safe return.

Sighing, he decided to turn in for the night. Hopefully they'd have a run of luck in the morning.

At day break, the sleeping companions rose one at a time, yawning and stretching as they got ready for the day. They followed the same path the last group had taken. Tracking the Centaurs after their daily run passed the bluff. Oliver and Katie were looking at everything around them with wonder, they were two others who'd never set foot in the Forbidden Forest before.

Hiking through the trees for hours, the people in the group were beginning to become bored. With no signs of Firenze or the other Centaurs Dean, Luna, Ginny and Ron had taken to playing 'I spy.'

"I spy, with my witches eye, something covered in grey." Luna chimed.

"That boulder over there?" Dean pointed, Luna beamed.

"You're quite good at this game, Dean."

"Yeah, you too, Luna." Dean mumbled while several people stifled their snickers.

"Quiet, I think I hear something." Harry said. Stopping in the middle of the path, looking around for any signs of movement.

When he heard the soft sound of hooves on the ground, he spun around quickly, almost toppling over in his haste.

Coming from around the bend, Firenze was once again making his was to meet with the witches and wizards looking for him.

"Does anyone find it strange that he always just seems to pop up?" Ginny murmured.

"Not at all," Luna chimed, "Centaurs are very private. They don't let outsiders into their domain, it's very possible they had lookouts who spotted us, or they might have even seen us coming."

"Wouldn't lookouts mean they would've already seen us coming?" Dean asked her with a confused expression.

"Not necessarily." She said.

Before he could retort, the Centaur had reached their group and Firenze stood before them with a serene expression.

"Harry Potter, you've come to visit us again."

"Yes," Harry said firmly, taking off his pack he rummaged around before drawing something bulky from its depths. Pulling back the black fabric covering what lay inside, Harry presented a golden telescope with various bobbles and levers lining the outside. Roughly the size of his arm.

"I'd like to offer this Telescope to you, in exchange for all you know about Hermione. It's a black family heirloom and has been enchanted with several spells by Minerva McGonagall to allow the viewer a clearer sight. You should even be able to find the planets with it."

Holding it out awkwardly, Firenze watched him with dancing green eyes, "A fine gift. It is quite considerate, Harry Potter. We thank you."

Firenze bowed formally. Looking back at the group at large, "I see my words did not pacify you as I had hoped. Very well. Hermione Granger is caught in the midst of a bond which she cannot break. Her life tide is altering its course. By the end of the next moons turn, she will return in emerald flames."

Harry was flabbergasted by everything Firenze had said and everything he hadn't. There was so much left unsaid in what he'd told them that he had no idea what he was talking about. Before he could make a move, it was Luna who stepped forward, curtsying low.

"We thank you for your favour."

Nodding, Firenze turned back the way he'd come without a backward glance. The group at large stood around dumbly, wondering what it all meant.

"What the _fuck_ did any of that mean?" Ron said, speaking aloud everyone's thoughts on what just happened.

Luna smiled serenely, "I thought it was rather obvious."

Every one of the people there gave Luna varying looks of confusion and disbelief, Harry chose to try and figure out what she meant with her weird logic, "Why do you say that Luna?"

She turned to Harry, "You don't see?" When he just blinked, she smiled, "She's been bound to something that's going to change her life. And she'll probably be back by the end of the month through the fireplace." She said happily.

Everyone blinked, Katie spoke up, "Luna, what the hell do you mean?"

Luna blinked, "Firenze said she'd come back before the next moons turn. And that she would return through emerald flames, he obviously meant the floo."

The whole group had been shocked into surprise.

"So, what? We've just got ta wait for Hermione ta escape and pop up in tha bloody fireplace?" Oliver spoke in his heavy Scottish brogue.

Harry scratched his head, "I guess so, Firenze said she'd make it back by the end of the next moons turn. That's like, thirty days long right?"

Katie explained "A moons turn is roughly around eight days, we're on the first day of the next lunar cycle right now, so It would mean fifteen days at the most."

Harry grinned brightly, he turned and swept Luna up into a tight hug, spinning around. "You're a bloody genius, Luna!"

Luna stepped out of the hug calmly still speaking when Harry turned back to kiss Ginny, "Yes, I know you think so Harry, you've told me so before."


	26. Chapter 26

**HERMIONE**

  
Draco smirked, "She doesn't want her grandchildren to be bastards."

Hermione flushed, "Well that's not going to be a problem, because I am _not_ getting _pregnant!_ You had better get that idea out of her head, I don't think I could sit through another discussion about constellation baby names!"

"Noted."

Once they reached Draco's private rooms Hermione rounded on him.

"Draco, we need to talk."

" Are we on a first name basis now, Granger?"

"You took my virginity, I'll call you what I like. Don't avoid the subject."

"Alright." He smirked, stepping through the doors and taking a seat in a stuffed black chaise by the fire. Leaning back, Draco crossed one ankle over his knee levelling her with a blank stare, waiting for her to continue.

Sitting down in the seat opposite Draco gingerly, Hermione Started, "I need to leave."

He didn’t react.

"Draco, I'm a big part of the fight against Voldemort in this war. Harry needs me, The Order needs me. We are _so_ close to finishing this for good. I need to be there to see it through."

Draco watched her through her speech with dispassionate eyes, " _I_ need you, Granger."

She looked at him uncomfortably, "Draco, we barely know each other. There's no foundation for a relationship. Keeping me here will only enforce that."

"Can you guarantee your safety if I were to let you leave?"

"Well, _no_." She answered hesitantly, "Is anywhere really safe anymore? Harry's House is about the safest place for people like me in Britain though. No ones ever been able to find it, or get in without permission."

Draco looked thoughtful, "And how do you plan on getting all the way to Britain and returning in the span of a day?"

Hermione blanched, "A day?"

Draco lowered his crossed ankle to the floor, "I'd expect you to come back."

Hermione bit her lip, she hadn't anticipated this argument. "Look, we've sealed the bond. Maybe it would be best if we just went our separate ways?"

This was obviously the wrong thing to say, she hadn't meant to say it really. She'd just been airing her thoughts aloud, now it appeared that Draco was on the cusp of demonstrating.

Biting her lip anxiously, Hermione whimpered when his glowing quicksilver eyes met her stare.

" **Come here.** "

Without her consent, her body rose out of its seat and stepped the two feet across to him. Hermione was trembling hard now, raising her eyes to his fearfully.

Draco's preternatural orbs pinned her in place, flickering down to his lap and back to her face. " **Sit**."

Again, her body went into motion before she could react and suddenly she was straddling Draco's thighs, hands resting shakily on his pectorals as he observed her intently.

"I don't know what's going on in that pretty little head of yours. But it stops now. **You are _mine_.** "

The prepotent ringing in his tone made her involuntarily shudder, the way he was looking at her made her feel vulnerable and exposed in a way she'd never experienced before. His words reverberating through her body, an echo of his will.

She whispered, " _I just want to be able to see my friends, Draco."_

Picking up a lock of her hair, he studied her honeyed eyes.

"If I let you leave, _temporarily_ , will you promise to return of your own accord?"

Biting her lip, Hermione slowly nodded her head.

"Seven days, I'll come up with a solution."

Hermione blinked, "Really?"

He watched her closely as she became nervous once more, "Have I given you reason to doubt my word thus far, little lion?"

He had given her wand back without batting an eye. He had also complied with every single request she'd made thus far, this was their first point of contention and so she decided to play her cards close to her chest.

"Seven days?"

"Seven days." He repeated.

"And you'll let me leave?"

" _Temporarily?_ " She added quickly.

He seemed amused once more as one hand went to her hip and the other continued playing with her hair, "Yes, little lion. I'll let you leave. Temporarily." he finished teasingly.

Hermione, blushed, she was still straddling his lap and Draco was holding her, but she didn't feel anything sexual about the moment. He wasn't trying to seduce her and he wasn't trying to assert his authority or dominate her, she realised this as she observed him breathing her in and caressing body her absentmindedly. Seemingly calm now, he'd knowingly exposed his underbelly. He wanted her close. He wanted to keep her. To have him verbally confirm it left her feeling bereft about what she should do.

Looking back at him, Hermione made up her mind, she needed a contingency plan, no matter what promises he made to her. "How long would it take to fly back to London from here?"

Draco looked at her serenely, "Planning on taking off on my broom?"

"No." She said evenly, leaning forward to rest her head on his shoulder, relaxing into his embrace. "Just curious."

She couldn't see the hard stare that Draco was suddenly pinning her with from her vantage point. "It would take about fifteen hours by broomstick."

"Oh, well maybe you could make me a portkey then?" She whispered into his shoulder. Mentally filing the information away.

His nose lowered to her hair as he breathed her in, "Perhaps."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Can you guess Hermione's secret? Review xo


	27. Chapter 27

**HERMIONE**

Three days had passed since Hermione and Draco's deal. In that time they'd gotten to know each other a little better. Draco had refrained from touching her inappropriately, which she appreciated. His only request had been that she continue sleeping in his bed. Hermione had agreed on the condition that clothes were always to be worn and pheromones were strictly off limits. Draco had consented.

On the first day, Draco had taken her on a tour of The Plantation, which turned out to be a palace like structure with multiple wings and grounds. The library was an enormous hall, lined with shelves and ladders covering every inch of the colossal structure. Hermione had almost swooned when Draco told her to take whatever she liked. Then he'd taken her through the grounds, watching children playing on the quiditich pitch, he'd later told her that Blaise and Adrian had built for the kids. They had run into Pansy Parkinson and Daphne Greengrass who were teaching an amateur charms class, outside on the grass. When they mentioned they'd been in the gardens when Narcissa had been harassing Hermione, she had made her excuses and dragged Draco off to the next thing on the tour. When he brought her to a rocky cliffside and she spotted a hidden beach, she gasped. The picturesque tranquility of the scene was like looking into a different world.

When it had gotten dark, Draco had taken her inside to introduce her to his friends in the lounge. Blaise and Theo had prodded her with endless innapropriate questions until Draco had snapped at them to shut up and Pansy and Daphne had cackled evilly, telling the story of Hermione's first meeting with Narcissa, amidst fits of giggles and snickering. Adrian had introduced himself casually before strolling off to read a book in the corner. And Astoria and Hannah had pulled Hermione into a discussion of Muggle Literature. When Astoria told Hermione about Narcissa's penchant for reading muggle fantasy novels she had laughed in shock. The older Matron was already constantly surprising her.

After that, they'd said their goodbyes to the mismatch group of friends and retreated to Draco's room to sleep. It had taken a while, but she eventually drifted off into unconsciousness beside her would be mate.

The next day he took her to his Potions lab. He encouraged her to bring her books to read while he worked and shot random questions at her occasionally. The next day was much the same, aside from breaks for food or the bathroom, they'd been sequestered inside Draco's private rooms very much alone. What shocked her most was that she actually didn't mind. Draco was laconic and sarcastic but he was also considerate in his own way. An excellent conversationalist she'd found, he was short and concise in his eloquence, he often came off as cold but Hermione could see something deeper was going inside his head. He'd been through something and it had left him detached from the people around him. She could see it when he'd introduced her to his friends. He had been comfortable around them and had talked when spoken to, but for the most part he had drank his firewhiskey in silence while she socaliased amongst his peers.

Hermione was lost in her thoughts of everything that had happened in her short stay when she felt a faint tugging in her chest, looking up from the book she'd been staring at blankly she saw Draco watching her, standing in front of a steaming, bubbling couldron, his face and neck were lined in a fine sheen of sweat. His black V neck sweater clung to him. His skin was flushed pink and his pale eyes glowed in the dimly lit room.

"Hmm?" Hermione acknowledged, shifting her her eyes back to the page. It had become almost familiar in a matter of days. The slight tugging on the golden thread connecting them, generally Draco would do it whenever he wanted her attention in favour of speaking.

"I have something for you."

Hermione raised her eyes to Draco, watching her intently, he proceeded to pull a thin platinum chain from his pocket. Walking over, he wrapped the fine links around her wrist twice before sealing it. Hermione raised her hand to her face to observe her new trinket. It was very pretty. Tiny silvery white links that could have only been crafted with magic, glittered like fine gems in the light.

"The metal has been imbued with several spells and charms, one of which is a portkey." Hermione's eyes snapped up to his face, "After you leave, this chain will bring you back, just touch it and say, _portus_ , should you decide to return."

Draco was looking at her like he could see every thought running through her head and Hermione fought to maintain eye contact. _There was no possible way for him to know_. Her secret wasn't public knowledge, only a handful of people were even aware of it. Maintaining her poker face, she asked, "So you still intend to let me go?"

He watched her closely, "I said as much, didn't I?" Walking back around to his cauldron he continued stirring counterclockwise, focused on his work once more.

Hermione bit her lip, "You trust me to come back? Just like that?"

Draco stopped stirring carefully to look at her with stoic eyes, "I assume you’re an honest woman, Granger. You wouldn't break your word, would you?"

"Of course not!" She retorted irritated.

"Then why should I worry? I believe you'll keep your word and I've sworn to keep mine." His almost blank expression unnerved her. He never gave anything away. His mind was a walled garden, only _he_ could see the flowers blooming there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So what are we thinking so far? xo


	28. Chapter 28

**DRACO**

Tomorrow she was leaving. Draco had promised to let her leave in seven days, now those days had come to an end. He'd endeared himself to her as much as he could. He hadn't touched her when she slept next to him in in his bed, despite the screaming in his blood that he do otherwise, he'd acquiesced with all of her requests, he'd learnt as much about her as he possibly could.

She wasn't being entirely honest. He could feel her devious emotions like an echo in his chest. She was keeping secrets, he didn't mind. _Let her keep them,_ Draco thought. He had secrets of his own. The bracelet he'd given her was enchanted with more than just a portus charm.

The potion he'd been brewing consistently for the last several days was ready. He Laddled it into a bowl, the thick emerald liquid running out smoothly.

Turning around and reaching for a box on the shelf, Draco brought it back to his work bench, opening it up and pouring the grainy floo powder inside, into the bowl.

Draco stirred the green potion and floo powder together, this was a Black recipe from one of his mothers old grimoures. Back in the Middle Ages when the floo network had been created, his mothers ancestor had created a potion to alter floo powder. The Blacks were always very private and didn't like the idea of connecting their fireplace to a public register, and so she had created a powder that allowed the user to travel to whichever fireplace they so chose, registered or not. It had taken him six days to brew.

He hardened the mixture with his wand before using a pestle to grind it back into a fine powder. Pouring a liberal amount into a black leather pouch and tying it off tightly before heading back upstairs. Hermione would be asleep by now, it was well after midnight.

Creeping into his bedroom, Draco found that he was correct, Hermione was sprawled across the mattress, she'd kicked the sheets off as he'd come to know she was wont to do. She'd also taken to wearing his shirts and boxers to bed. When he'd presented her with a silk night gown the first night of their agreement she'd scowled and immediately raided his drawers. He smirked faintly at the memory as he changed and got ready for bed.

Draco had to push Hermione's body across the mattress gently before he could lay down. It was strange. He'd never been able to sleep with someone else in his bed. Even after an intimate encounter he'd always retreated to his own space. Now, all he wanted was to keep the witch beside him close. He'd never wanted this kind of connection to another person. He loved his mother and that was enough. He cared about his friends and that was enough. Now this little witch was taking up a place in his mind that was growing larger by the day.

Lost in his thoughts, Draco didn't notice when Hermione had begun to fidget in her sleep until she rolled into his side, throwing an arm around his waist. Looking down, his little witch was deep in sleep, frowning slightly as she snuggled in closer.

Draco lay still, watching her for an indefinite amount of time before laying back and closing his eyes. Slowly, he brought the arm currently under Hermione's riotous curls around her back. Dragging the backs of his fingers up and down her spine in a caress until darkness took him.

Upon waking, Draco found Hermione was still fast asleep. She'd burrowed in closer during the night and now had her leg thrown over his hip. Sitting up slowly, he disentangled himself from her hold before standing and heading into the bathroom.

When he was done, Draco found Hermione was dressed and smiling, sitting on the end of his bed reading another book. She was wearing the blue dress again. He stepped over to her, watching her face hungrily when she looked up at him with bright golden eyes. Honeyed pools of light, illumating her face in an almost iridescent way.

Reaching out, Draco cupped Hermione's milky jaw with his hand, stroking the apple of her cheek with his thumb until he saw the blush creeping up her neck. Leaning down, he looked her in the eyes and pressed a light kiss to her lips. Pulling back and taking a hold of her hand to guide her to breakfast. He'd already put the pouch in his pocket and could feel it dragging against his leg like a heavy reminder that she would be leaving today.

Breakfast had fast become a commodity with Hermione around, the adults generally went to the kitchens whenever they felt hungry but the kids on The Plantation were on a strict schedule. Breakfast was served between the hours of seven and nine in the dining hall before they were expected to attend lessons with the older witches and wizards. It wasn't a formal education but it was a start. Maintaining a routine was the most important thing, keeping them occupied through out the days was a task none of them could shoulder completely.

Hermione had made a habit of talking to the young ones over breakfast. Interrogating them on all things about what they did with their days. Her eyes lit up whenever she did, excited ramblings tumbling from her mouth, all Draco did was sit and watch her. Like a moth to her flame, he was powerless against her kind and honest disposition, he elected to stay silent, watching her in favour of interaction.

Currently she was talking to Abigail. Amelia's little sister. Abigail had been a terrified little mouse when she first came to The Plantation. Wouldn't have said boo to a ghost. Not that they had one. Now she was just as smiley and chipper as the rest of the little brats. Except for Amelia. She'd never completely regained her youthful disposition and often spent her time invading his work space. She'd clung onto him as a sort of older brother figure, looking to him for guidance. Until he'd been captured that is. No one had thought what would happen to her after Draco's disappearance. His family and friends had been so immersed in their own grief that they hadn't noticed others.

Draco had though. Upon his return, Amelia hadn't sought him out, not once. He'd found her by the beach on several occasions, looking out across the water.

Their last interaction suddenly came to the forefront of his mind, looking at Hermione, she was still speaking animatedly to Abigail and her friends. Draco threw his gaze around and looked for her sister.

Finding her quickly, Amelia was eating a bowl of porridge while her eyes were glued to the book in front of her, in the corner. She didn't pay anyone in the seats around her any mind and Draco felt compelled to speak to her.

Rising from his chair, he walked over to the next table and sat down in front of her. Amelia didn't raise her eyes from the page, "You leaving again?" She continued spooning mushy oats into her mouth.

"No."

" _She_ leaving, then?" Amelia gestured with her head in Hermione's and her sisters direction, still without raising her eyes from the page.

"Yes."

"Today?"

"Yes."

Amelia raised her eyes to his, the fury dancing there surprised him.

"Why?"

Draco rose a brow and Amelia huffed.

"She's your bond-mate. I've been reading about it. She needs to stay _here_."

Picking up her book from the table, Draco read the title, _The Lives and Follies of The Fae_.

"This book is a bit dated." He said, placing it back down.

"All of the books here are dated." She bit back, returning her eyes to her porridge.

"We've made an agreement. She will return soon enough."

"How do you know she'll keep her word? That's _Hermione Granger,_ she's _Harry Potters_ best friend. Do you really think they'll just _give_ _her_ _back?_ "

Draco hadn't had time to respond when he felt a delicate hand on his shoulder, looking around, Hermione was staring down at him with curious gold eyes, Abigail at her side.

The young girl looked between the three of them, "You're coming back right?"

Hermione looked down at the girl with the big baby blues and over to her older sibling, night to her sisters day, this girl was closed off with hard blue eyes and a pinched frown.

Kneeling down in front of the girl at Draco's side, she whispered loud enough for all of them to hear, "Of course I'm coming back. I gave my word, didn't I?"

Abigail smiled, happy with this answer while Amelia narrowed her eyes suspiciously, "Don’t make my sister promises you don't intend to keep."

Kicking her chair back loudly and gaining the attention of several people, Amelia stalked from the room, book clutched under her arm as she swept through the doors.

Hermione told Abigail to go sit with her friends quietly, taking the seat in front of Draco.

"She doesn't like me?" Hermione asked evenly.

Draco shot her an amused look, "Amelia isn't partial to anyone."

"She seemed to like _you_ well enough."

"Jealous, Granger?"

"Please." Hermione rolled her eyes, "She looks fifteen at most."

Draco's eyes danced, "Afraid of a little competition?"

Hermione narrowed her eyes, "Why is she like that, Draco?"

He watched her in silence for several moments before deigning to answer, "Amelia clung to me when she and her sister were first brought here. Everyone thought It was cute, that she had a crush. I knew that it wasn't the case."

Hermione was sitting up straight and paying close attention, "Amelia's home life wasn't great. Her father is a Death Eater and their mother is dead. She spent a long time learning how to cope with that, and this war so she could protect Abigail. She doesn't like to be coddled or lied to. When I disappeared, she didn't have that anymore and she bacame even more withdrawn."

Draco pinned Hermione with steel grey eyes, "She suspects you don't intend to keep your word and return."

Hermione bit her lip, "Do you believe that?"

He watched her evenly, "I believe that you will try to do whatever you think is right, regardless of personal feelings."

It took Hermione a moment to respond, "What if I brought someone with me?"

"I assume you don't mean me."

"Hannah." He blinked, "She's the most neutral from the bunch, she's already friends with most of my friends. I'll bring her with me to explain the situation. I'll tell The Order I'll help as much as I can, but that I have to return before I turn into a pumpkin." She finished off jokingly.

"Why would I turn you into a pumpkin?"

Hermione flushed, "It’s a muggle story. The girl, Cinderella, goes to the ball and has to return home by midnight before her carriage is turned back into a pumpkin."

"I didn't realise muggles had access to that kind of magic."

"They don't. It's a children's story. A fairytale they read to children. Like  _Babbitty Rabbitty_ or _The Bubbling Cauldron_."

Draco looked at his pocket watch, "We best get you to the fireplace then Cinderella, your ball awaits."


	29. Chapter 29

**HERMIONE**

After searching out Hannah and explaining what she wanted, Hannah had stood and clapped and giggled next to a stoic Theo. They had been examining some exotic looking plants in Theo's lab when Hermione and Draco found the pair and told them of Hermione's plan. Theo had scowled petunlantly that his lab partner was being taken away, but softened when Hannah leant down and hugged him tightly, promising to return soon.

After getting some clothes together from her room, Draco led the witches back through the halls to his bedroom. Hannah looked around curiously as she had only been in there once before, when Draco was sick. While Hermione studiously avoided looking towards the bed in the presence of the Hufflepuff.

Coming to a stop in front of the large fireplace on the far side of the room, Draco turned to them, pulling a leather Pouch from his pants pocket.

"This is a modified floo powder, it will allow you to travel to any active fireplace, registered or not. When you decide to return, just use the powder and say 'The Plantation'. This is the only active fireplace so you'll floo directly to this room." Draco handed Hermione the pouch when he finished speaking. Her eyes were lit in curiosity as she accepted the pouch with reverence.

Draco grabbed Hermione by the elbow gently when she took the floo powder from his grasp, looking at her with indiscernible eyes, he held her chin delicately before swooping down to kiss her hard. Pulling back after just a moment, he leant forward and whispered in her ear, "Don't make me come after you, Granger."

Hermione shivered when she felt his breathe tickling her ear with his words. There was a definite edge to his voice, almost like he was daring her to stay away. Swallowing, she pulled back and looked him in the eyes, the pale grey irises pinning her in place. "I promise, Draco. I will come back."

They had agreed on a fourty eight hour trip. Hermione had tried to haggle for more but Draco had flat refused. He was stretching his limits for the sake of her comfort, he'd been nothing but respectful and courteous, keeping his touches brief and appropriate even though she knew he was dying to do more. She'd read some more on Veela's from The Zabini's extensive collection. Right now his primary concern was her comfort and needs, placed high above his own, he'd probably do just about anything to gain her trust and acceptance.

She had taken to watching him sometimes. When she was sure he wasn't aware, she would observe him, analysing everything she saw and knew. He moved like a panther. Slinking around gracefully, a jungle cat prowling through the trees. It often made her feel like a startled animal being stalked in the woods. He radiated control, every one of his movements deliberate as well as his words. He didn't feel a need to fill the silence. They'd spent hours in each other's company in the passed several days, sometimes talking about random subjects he'd sporadically throw at her and sometimes hours without ever speaking a word. He would work on his potions studiously, while Hermione read whatever book she had picked up that day. When she asked him what he was working so hard on he told her it was a neutralising spell he was trying to create. She'd become quite curious and would sometimes read his notes to try and figure out what it was he was attempting exactly.

He had promised to tell her exactly what everything was when she returned. She knew he was just waiting for the moment she tried to escape, she was sure it was also why he was giving her so much slack in the rope tying them together. He wanted her to give him a reason to contain her.

Hermione huffed, she was going to keep her word. She needed to prove to Draco she could be trusted and she would. She knew there was no escaping this, just like she knew she would always feel the magical thread wrapped around her heart reminding her of who she belonged with. She was far from accepting Draco, but maybe she was already taking a few steps in that direction.

"What's going on in that pretty little head, Granger?" He asked her, watching as her thoughts flickered across her eyes.

Hermione blinked back to reality and met Draco's stare, watching him silently, she took ahold of his hand, "I promise Draco, I will be back in two days, you have my word." Reaching up she hugged him tightly, only letting go after she felt him embrace her back.

When Draco pulled back he watched her closely, murmuring, "I'll seen you soon." Before sweeping from the room.

Hermione turned around to see Hannah standing by the fireplace watching her curiously, "it's so strange seeing you together. I never thought I'd see him with anyone. I know he's a good person, he's just so cold and detached, it still unnerves me sometimes."

Hermione blinked, "Yes, I know what you mean, there's a lot more going on than he ever lets on. It makes him easy to talk to though."  
  
It was Hannah's turn to blink, "Easy to talk to? I haven't known him to be talkative about anything."

Hermione blushed, "Well that's the point isn't it? He's very short and concise, he doesn't prattle on about nonsense."

Hannah looked at Hermione thoughtfully, "You like him, don't you?"

She reddened further, "That's the whole point of this isn't it?" She whispered, "That I'm _supposed_ to like him and be with him?"

Hannah touched Hermione on the forearm gently, "Only if you want it to be."

Hermione looked at Hannah with a raw vulnerability, "I don't know. Before all of this I would have said _no_ way in hell. Now, I'm just… _confused_."

"You _do_ like him." Hannah said knowingly.

Hermione blinked, "I don't know if I'm ready to admit that yet."

Hannah smiled brightly, "That's not an issue, we're going home Hermione. It may be temporary, but we're going home and we get to see the people we love."

Hermione smiled weakly, "Yeah." Straightening, she gripped Hannah's forearm, "Harry and the others _can't_ know about Draco, not yet. I, I want to tell them, I just want to spend some time with everyone before I do. Everything will change when they know." She looked at Hannah pleadingly who just smiled sympathetically.

"I understand Hermione, I'd never be able to spit it out if I were you."

"I don't know if I can. Draco told me not to tell anyone about The Plantation, total secrecy is the only reason no one has tried to find them yet."

Hannah nodded, "Don't worry Hermione, this will go fine. It might be a bit hard, but you're Hermione Granger, you can do just about anything if you put your mind to it." She smiled encouragingly, Hermione took a deep breathe.

"Okay, let's do this."

Taking a handful of the emerald powder from the pouch, she examined it in fascination before handing off the bag to Hannah. Hesitating before the flames.

"I'll be right behind you." Hannah said supportingly.

Hermione took a deep breathe and threw the powder into the flames, stepping inside and speaking clearly, "Twelve Grimmauld Place."

Hannah's face was the last thing she saw as she was swallowed by green flames and sucked away.


	30. Chapter 30

**HARRY**

Harry and Ginny were sitting by the fire, snuggling on the chaise and exchanging whispered words. Ron sat across from them, slaughtering Neville in a game of Wizards Chess.

About the room were Fleur and her young daughter, Victoire playing patty cake, George and Angelina were flirting by the bookcase, Oliver, Cho, Dean, Pavarti and Charlie were playing exploding snap at the table and Teddy played with a toy broomstick by Neville's feet.

When the flames in the fire place suddenly glowed green, Harry snapped his eyes to the fireplace.

" _Someone's flooing in_."

Everyone waited with bated breathes as the flames grew higher before lowering back to the ground, out of the flames stepped the witch no one had seen in over a week.

"Surprise!" Hermione said to her captive audience.

Harry rushed over, throwing his arms around Hermione in the tightest hug he could manage. She hugged him back just as fiercely, squeezing for all she was worth. Harry sighed. He'd missed her hugs.

Everyone in the room was clamouring closer, talking over each other but the two friends ignored them, "Where have you _been_ , Hermione?" Harry whispered desperately in Hermione's ear.

Hermione closed her eyes, sucking back her tears, "It's a _long_ story Harry, one I'll tell you. Just not right now. Right now, I want to appreciate the fact that I'm seeing you and everyone else again."

Before Harry could say another word the fireplace glowed green again, the lithe figure of a pretty blonde emerged from the flames.

" _Hannah!"_ Neville exclaimed, shoving forward through the bodies, their meeting much imitating Harry and a Hermione's.

Harry looked back to Hermione, "Hermione, what the _hell_ is going on?"

She grinned sheepishly, "The same people I've been staying with saved Hannah a while ago. She was captured by Death Eaters and they helped free her."

Harry looked around to see Neville and everyone else staring at Hannah for her response, "It's true. They saved me. They took me in and they've been so kind to me. I've made a home there."

" _Hermione?_ "

Hermione turned around slowly to see Ron, who had been over her left shoulder the whole time, silently watching the scene unfold.

 _Here we go_ , thought Harry.

"Ron!" She said in a cheery voice, clearing her throat, "How are you?"she tried again with more sincerity.

He blinked. "How am I?"

She stared, " _How am I?!_ The woman I _love_ has been missing for over a week and she just strolls into the living room saying ' _surprise! How have you been?'_ How do you _think_ I feel Hermione?!"

She scowled, "Don't you _dare_ put that on me, Ronald Weasley. I've made myself perfectly clear where we stand. You're just too _thick_ to figure it out!"

Ron's face got redder than his hair as everyone looked on like this was the most entertainment they'd had in months.

Before the fight could get any worse Harry stepped forward, "Right, shows over folks. Everyone move it somewhere else."

People began to shuffle out of the room slowly, one by one, until lastly Fleur and her little girl along with Teddy Lupin, now sporting aqua coloured hair, approached Hermione slowly, "I am sorry, zee children wished to say 'ello to 'Ermione before we leave."

Hermione crouched down and embraced the toddlers happily chatting away animatedly. All the while, Fleur looked on with a happy expression, that was until she smelt something unexpected. Stiffening, Fleur discreetly inhaled long and deep. Gasping, she looked directly at Hermione who caught her eye over Victoire's shoulder.

Hermione widened her eyes and shook her head slowly, a silent plea for Fleur to not reveal her secret.

Fleur nodded, holding out her hands and calling for the children. "Time to leave _Mon Cheri_ , you too Teddy, 'Ermione 'as a lot of explaining to do." Frost blue eyes zeroing in on the healing bite marks on Hermione's neck before she and the children left the room.

Teddy ran back up to her, hugging her tight and whispering in her ear, "I missed you lots, Aunt Mione" like it was his deepest secret.

Hermione pulled back from the small boy to see he had suddenly coloured his eyes and hair just like hers. She went white, the colour draining from her face as she scruffed the boys head playfully and stood, moving onto the next person.

"Aren't you going to hug me, Ginny?" Hermione piped teasingly.

The redhead grinned, launching herself at the curly haired brunette. Hermione, held out her arms to catch her as they embraced.

Harry watched the scene happily, overjoyed that Hermione had finally come back. She had been gone a total of twelve days if they included the time she had been gone on the mission. Which Harry did. Ron was sulking as usual whenever Hermione slapped him down and Harry felt little pity for him. _How many times does she have to say no?_

Sighing, Harry wrapped his arm around Ron pulling him into a side hug before addressing the people left in the room, "Okay, how about we bring some food and drinks in here and you girls can tell us all about what happened and where you've been."

Harry didn't think it could happen, but Hermione's face just got whiter. Giving a wobbly smile, "That's a lovely idea Harry."

Hannah, who stood near by, laughed Shakily as her eyes suddenly began to dart around the room.

Harry watched the witches reactions closely, _What could have possibly happened?_


	31. Chapter 31

**DRACO**

She was gone. He'd let her go. Draco was slumped on the bar in the lounge, staring into a tumbler of whiskey. His friends scattered about the room and Amelia perched at his side with an open book in front of her on the counter.

"It's says here that without constant physical interaction, mated Veela's become moody and irritated." Amelia looked up, "That doesn't really help, you're always moody and irritated."

Blaise and Theo who were seated on his other side snickered into their glasses, giving Draco quick side glances, in between taking sips of firewhiskey.

"What else does the book say, Lia?" Blaise asked with mirthful eyes. Draco shot him a blank look as Amelia turned the page.

"It also says that you'll probably go into heat for a few days during the first week of Spring every year."

Blaise and Theo were guaffing loudly now while Draco sipped his drink in silence. Amelia went back to her reading and he was left alone with his thoughts once more. After everything that had happened to him when he finished his fifth year at Hogwarts and the litany of shit that had followed, Draco had never anticipated being a part of an ' _us_ '. His dependency on Granger was eating away at him from the inside out where he already felt hollow. After being thrown to unimaginable torture at the hands of a madman by his father and the horror they had reigned down on him after his capture, years after his and his mothers disappearance, Draco wasn't sure he was capable of connecting with people. His primary tutor in the art of emotional relationships was a coward and a lunatic. He'd spent weeks, torturing his own son once word of his capture had hit The Dark Lords ears. The Dark Lord had had little interest in him at that point though, telling his father to all but kill him. Lucius had been intent on locating his missing wife and had become enraged when his son had denied him the information. Eventually he'd tired of abusing him and would occassionally visit to mentally torture his son instead. Hitting him with spells through the bars until he was too weak to fight back, he would take strolls inside Draco's mind, twisting the memories he had of those he cared for. Ironically enough, his memories of Granger were amongst the few his father had left untouched. Everything he remembered about her was pure and real. His hatred of her had been blind and her fury in the face of it had been magnificent.

He rubbed his jaw idly as he thought back to the moment she had slapped him during third year. He'd never been so shocked by anyone or anything in his life. Her rage had bewildered his younger self. The memory of it made left him with the hint of a smile. There were so few things left that he could remember fondly, that she was one of them in any capacity warmed his cold heart.

He'd meant it when he told her, he didn't care about her blood. He didn’t care about much of anything anymore. His relationships were a strain to maintain sometimes, his mother had fallen ill to her demons and had become a kind of mad hatter character from that book Astoria had given her. Her manic demeanour a stinging reminder that he had been unable to protect the one he loved most in her greatest hours of need.

His mother had been left to the whims of murderers and sycophants while he fumbled through a task set for him to fail. His once cherished memories of her now tainted, twisted reminders of his complete humiliation and defeat.

"Do you think she'll come back?" Amelia asked suddenly, pulling him from his morbid thoughts.

He swallowed his drink, pouring another, "She'll be back. She's Hermione Granger, Gryffindor through and through. If there was any witch or wizard in this world you could trust implicitly to keep their word, it would be her."

Amelia blinked, "I've never heard you talk about someone so much in one sentence."

Blaise and Theo snorted into their drinks, coughing in amongst their sniggers. Draco took a drink nonchalantly, "She has a lot to be said about her."

Amelia grinned, "You like Her."

Draco frowned, "What are you, twelve? Of course I _like_ her. I'm _supposed_ to _like_ her."

"Yeah, but it's weird." Amelia said lamely.

"Why?"

She blinked, "Well, you don't like anybody."

Blaise and Theo laughed uproariously, falling all over each other while Draco shot them an irritated look.

Theo snickered breathlessly, "Kid, you've got to hang out with us more, you're a better commentator than Lee Jordan ever was."

Amelia scowled, "Narcissa doesn't like me being up here."

Theo blinked, "Why not?"

"She's says I'm too young to drink and that you two are a bad influence."

Draco smirked, his new memories weren't so horrible either.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so what are our thoughts so far? What did you think of the trip through Draco's head? Let me know! xo


	32. Chapter 32

**HERMIONE**

They'd moved the chairs into a semi circle around the table by the fireplace, plates of biscuits, cakes and butterbeers covering the table in the centre.

Hermione was seated next to Hannah and Harry, Ginny on his other side and Ron on Ginny's. Neville was seated next to Hannah on her left. EVeryone watching them both intently, waiting for them to speak.

"Um, well, where to start. Hannah, why don't you go first?"

Hermione shot Hannah a desperate look, " _ah_ , um, well."

"Maybe just start from the beginning." Harry said patiently.

Hannah blushed, "Okay, well I was on a mission to get my muggle relatives out of the country as you probably all know." When there were nods all round she continued, "We were ambushed on our way back in Godrick's Hollow and I was captured." Hannah swallowed, "I was taken to Hogwarts where I was tortured and locked in a cell in the dungeons. There was a man in the cell beside mine. He helped me get through what happened to me and together we escaped. He took me to safety with his friends and I've been living there with them, ever since."

The group had varying looks of horror and sympathy as Hannah relayed her story. None looked as shocked as Neville though. He cared for all his friends deeply, loyal to a fault. Hannah had been one of his closest, and much like Draco, she had come back from the dead.

"That still doesn't explain how _you_ ended up with them." Ron spoke up in the quiet, all eyes turning to Hermione once more.

She flushed, _brilliant_ , Ron really did have the worst timing.

"Well, you see, it's quite complicated."

"Yeah, I'll _bet_ it is, who gave you that dress?" Ron prodded.

Her embarrassment was turning to anger. "If you'd let me get a word in edgewise, I might be able to get it out, you Git!"

Ron flushed a violent red, scowling when Harry intervened, "Ron, leave it alone. Let Hermione speak."

"Thank you, Harry. As I was saying, It's complicated. I was taken completely by accident. When they realised who I was, they wanted to...keep me. Hannah was already there when I arrived and introduced me to everyone. I made a deal with one of them, if I promised to return within two days, I would be allowed to leave." She was warping her words some, but not to any extreme lengths.

"And _who_ is this person? Why did they even _take_ you in the first place? _Why_ do you have to go back?" Ginny asked.

Hermione blushed, "His name is unimportant. He's asked that he and his friends remain anonymous. I made a deal which included mine and Hannah's return within fourty eight hours."

" _Hermione_ ," she snapped her head to Harry, "These people _took you captive_. And Firenze said you were taken by a _creature_. That you were in the midst of a storm. Hell, he even told us that you'd come back through the _bloody floo!_ " Harry pointed at the fireplace dramatically while Ron nodded his head in agreement. Ginny looked torn, biting her lip, awaiting her response. Hannah was pointedly looking anywhere but the people in the group and Nevllie just looked confused.

"You went to Firenze, looking for me?" She asked weakly.

" _Of course_ we did, Hermione. We love you. Why don't you trust us?"

Hermione looked pained, "Of course I trust you, Harry." She whispered, "But these people _don't_. And the only way I could leave was if I promised not to bretray _their_ trust. I can't tell you where we were, or who we were with, or _why_ we were there. It's not my place. If I tell you my own reasons for being there, I will be betraying countless innocent people, Harry. You can't ask me to do that."

"We _can_ and we _will!"_ Ron stood up, pointing at her angrily, "You come back here after being _gone_ for almost _two weeks_ and expect us not to ask any questions?"

Hermione threw Ron a furious glare, "I will not betray the people who have given me their trust so you can feel justified in your petty anger, Ronald! I did not say you couldn't ask me questions! I said that I would tell you all anything that I could!"

At that moment, the door clicked open and Luna poked her head through, "Oh, hello Hermione. It's good to see you. Hello Hannah, I didn’t know you were here, I'd heard you were dead actually."

Luna walked the rest of the way through the door and closed it quitetly behind her before running her fingers over the front of her velvet navy empire dress. Effectively defusing the escalating tension in the room with her very presence.

Hermione sighed, silently sending out her thanks to Luna and her disarming demeanor.

When Luna came forward to hug both of the witches, everyone stood around awkwardly waiting for them to make it through their social curtesies before returning to their argument.

That was until Luna spoke. "Hermione, there are incisor bite marks in your neck, did you know?" As usual, her airy words were just a nonchalant observation, but Hermione was frozen as they all watched the blood draining from her face.

" _Hermione?_ " Harry said watching her closely now, "What's Luna talking about?"

"H-Harry, I can explain." Hermione said weakly, pulling her hair forward to cover the bites, but it was too late, the damage was done.

Harry stepped closer to Hermione, a frown marring his face, when he was standing in front of her he raised his hand to cup her cheek, lifting her fearful eyes to his bottle greens as he watched her with an indiscernible expression.

"Harry, l-"

" _Legilimens_!" Without any warning Hermione was thrown back into her memories of the last week. Reliving the experiences in a dizzying flicker of images. When she saw herself crying out after the first time she'd been bitten by Draco she panicked, throwing all of her mental weight into throwing Harry from her mind.

" _Arghhhh!_ " Hermione fell back on her behind with the force it took to pull out, looking up at Harry in utter shock.

" _Harry_ …"

"Hermione, I don't know _what_ that was, but it wasn't… _normal_." Harry said, eyes flickered to the bite marks that were no longer visible behind her hair as she flushed.

"What did you see, Harry?" Ron asked.

Hermione had no idea what was going on behind Harry's eyes and she was becoming more and more aphrehensive by the second.

"I think it would be best if you were to stay in your room Hermione. Hannah, you can take Ginny's room, until we've spoken to you separately, you're both on lockdown."

Neville helped Hermione to her feet, "Harry, this is Hermione and Hannah you're talking about. Why would you lock them up when they've done nothing wrong?" Neville said. Brarely standing in front of the girls who were now shooting each other alarmed looks.

"What I saw wasn't very clear, but I saw enough. Hermione's clearly under some _creatures_  influence. I saw it biting her and other... _things_." Harry finished, pinning Hermione with his intense green gaze.

Hermione dipped her head, avoiding Harry's eye. Thoughts running a million miles a second. Hermione had a strong mind, and Harry was an above average Legilimens at best. She'd seen what he'd gleaned from her mind first hand and none of it was a solid picture. There was definitely some risqué images, but Draco hardly looked like the same person Harry would remember. His face had filled out and his skin had taken on a darker hue, he still brushed his pale hair back, and he now had a strong jaw, littered with stubble. He was also a lot taller and bulkier than in school. Harry would definitely have his suspicions, but he wouldn't have been able to identify anyone for sure from the blurry images but herself, she was confident on that. Still, she was shaken to her core, that Harry had broken into her head like that, hurt more than anything else.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahhh! Things are starting to get complicated for Hermione. Drop me a line and let me know what you think so far! xoxo


	33. Chapter 33

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow! People are pretty angry with Harry at the moment. I'm not sure how you'll take this chapter but maybe some of you will feel it's ironic. I've got the day off today so I might be sending you some more, it depends how much free time I get to edit the chapters. xoxo

**HARRY**

After taking an eerily silent Hermione and Hannah upstairs and taking their wands, Harry had begun gathering all the senior members of The Order in the sitting room. Explaining what had transpired when Hermione had arrived, now he was sitting alone in his bedroom. Thoughts focused on Hermione and the things he'd seen inside her head.

Firenze had been right. She had been taken by a creature. The tall, blurry figure that had cropped up several times in his clumsy manouvering of Hermione's memories definitely wasn't human. He felt his gut churn when the image of the writhing bodies and massive white wings exploding from the creatures back flashed across his mind again.

Groaning, Harry removed his glasses and rubbed his palms into his eyes, trying to scorch the memory from his brain. He'd never wanted to see Hermione like that. Ever. he'd kept the details of that particular image to himself, but he had told them all about it biting her. His concern far outweighing any guilt he felt. McGonnagal had said she would look up what kind of Fae Humanoids might be living in the forest and Arthur had volunteered to help. Fleur had argued meekly that she might not be influenced at all. While Ron had suggested using Veritaserum as they couldn't know if they could trust anything the girls were saying.

It had all escalated from there and had lasted for a good few hours. Voices shouting over one another in a bid to be heard.

He felt guilty locking Hermione up in her room, but he didn't know if he could trust her. The images he'd seen in her head haunted him, affirming that he had made the right decision. Sighing, Harry looked up when he heard a soft knocking at his door. "Come in."

Shoving his glasses on quickly, Harry came face to face with Fleur. Smiling softly, she stepped inside and closed the door behind her.

"'Ow 'ave you been, 'Arry?" She asked in her delicate French accent.

Harry straightened, "Everything's gone tits up as usual, my best friend might be under some creatures freaky mind control and we can't even think about putting our plans into place without her." He didn't know why he had blurted all of that out to Fleur, but he felt relieved and happy that he had.

"Oh?" Fleur stepped further into the room and took a seat beside Harry on the bed, holding him captive him with those icy blues. "'As she done something to break your trust?"

"Well, no." Harry said looking at her dazedly, "I just saw her naked with some man, angel _thing_ that was biting her when I was inside her head and now I don't know whether to believe anything she says."

Fleur lifted a delicate brow, smiling at him winningly, "That's a bit 'arsh don't you think?"

"No." Harry blinked, "She's my best friend, I want to keep her safe."

Fleur frowned, "'Arry, what did you do with 'Ermione and "annah's wands?"

"They're in my pocket."

Fleur gave him a blinding grin, "Give them to me?"

Harry reached into his pocket and held the wands out for her to take.

Fleur stood gracefully, leaning down to kiss Harry on the forehead softly as she accepted the wands, "You'll forget about the wands and that I was ever 'ere, won't you 'Arry?"

Harry nodded up at Fleur dreamily as she glided from his room. Smiling, Harry fell back on his bed and sighed before falling into a dreamless sleep grinning goofily all the while.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...so.? ;) xo


	34. Chapter 34

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so things are picking back up again now! Let me know your thoughts and what you think is going to happen or what SHOULD happen. :)

**FLEUR**

After the disaster of a meeting in the sitting room, Fleur knew that only bad things would happen if they continued to keep Hermione confined. She'd smelt it the instant Hermione was in her presence. She'd been claimed by a Veela. A powerful Alpha if her scent was anything to go by. Fleur was amazed that he'd let her out of his sight! Newly mated Veela were highly volatile, especially males. Her uncle had mauled his wife's ex boyfriend to death when she was a little girl. She didn't know all the details of the story, only that the man wouldn't leave her Aunt alone and when she had mated to Fleur's uncle. He had gone into a mad fury when the man had shown up at her house, his body had been found riddled with gouges and scorch marks.

If Hermione's mate was confident enough to let her leave his side then he must be strong indeed. Nothing good could come from a raging Veela and if Hermione said he'd allowed her to leave for fourty eight hours only, then it was Fleur's mission to help her get out of the house. She had everyone's safety in mind after all. Hermione would be fine, her mate would never harm her. The Order however, were uneducated in the ways of Veela and would end up bringing his fury down on all of them if she didn't move swiftly.

After using some subtle persuasion to retrieve the witches wands from Harry, Fleur waited until complete darkness had taken over the house before slipping up the stairs to Hermione's room.

Undoing the wards quietly, she slipped inside before casting a silencing charm. Hermione who had been awake, sat up on her bed, staring at the beautiful Veela woman as she glided into the room.

Sitting down beside Hermione, Fleur smiled comfortingly, "'Ow are you little dove?"

Hermione attempted a smile but it came on as more of a grimace, "Going mad. Draco's going to be furious if I don't come back when I said I would. I was hoping to avoid all of this mess, that was obviously a childish daydream."

Fleur brows rose into her hairline, "Draco _Malfoy?_ "

Hermione blushed, whispering, "You can't tell anyone Fleur, _please_. I promised him I wouldn't say anything."

Fleur blinked, "I can see why. 'Arry and Ron would _never_ let you leave if they knew."

"Exactly." Hermione whispered, "He's been kind and patient with me, nothing like he was in school. I read up on Veela's in his library as much as I could while I was there. Everything he's doing for me is going completely against his nature."

Hermione blinked back tears, pinning Fleur with watery gold, "I'm worried I've asked too much. I thought I could handle all of this diplomatically but it's all gone tits up!" Hermione hiccuped and Fleur smiled at the reminder of Harry expressing the same words.

She reached out and stroked Hermione's curly hair back over her shoulder to examine the incisor marks in her neck. "Do not fret little dove, I 'ave brought a gift with me." Reaching into her skirt pocket, Fleur produced two wands, one of which was Hermione's.

"I convinced 'Arry, these were best left with me." Fleur demurred, batting her eyes prettily.

Hermione blushed and giggled. She knew first hand how persuasive Veela could be.

"Thank you" she whispered. "Thank you so much for understanding." Hermione blinked back tears.

"Oh, 'Ermione, of course I understand. You are blood of my blood now, we are one and the same." She leant forward and kissed her cheek.

Standing from the bed, Fleur faced Hermione, "I ave to go, I'm sorry I couldn't bring you your floo powder, 'Arry gave it to Kingsley to inspect. Do not worry, once you are gone, I will 'elp lead them to the right conclusions."

Hermione sat, biting her lip and clutching the two wands in her hands, "Thank you." She whispered.

Fleur nodded before sweeping from the room and creeping quietly down the stairs into the room she shared with her husband and daughter. Pulling the blankets back and sliding in beside the strawberry blonde little girl, curled around her red haired father. Thinking about the hell the girl upstairs would be in for in the coming days.


	35. Chapter 35

**HERMIONE**

The next day had brought on rounds of questioning. Kingsley had advised against using Veritaserum, if Hermione had been bound by a vow, she could suffer the consequences of breaking it, if forced to reveal information she'd sworn not to.

And so they were forced to use old fashioned methods to interrogate the witch.

"And your birthday is?"

Hermione grit her teeth, "September nineteenth, nineteen seventy nine. I'm a Virgo if you were wondering." She finished sarcastically.

"You see! Something's influencing her! Hermione's _never_ rude to her elders." Ron exclaimed. Harry had his head in his hands and Kingsley and Mcgonagall were getting on her last nerve.

"Miss Granger, while I understand that this is a tiresome process, we need to step delicately with our questioning. Potter mentioned you'd promised not to reveal these people's secrets, he also mentioned you'd been bitten by some sort of humanoid creature."

Hermione shot Harry a glare who was currently leant up against her dresser, studiously avoiding her eye.

"Can you tell us what it was, Miss Granger?" Mcgonagall asked gently.

Until everything had happened, Hermione had had every intention of telling them about Draco's heritage. Now the words caught in her throat. She wasn't sure if she wanted to share that information anymore. Not at this point in time at least. If they came to know exactly what had happened to her, Hermione had no doubt in her mind that they would keep her locked up with the way everything had played out. She would _still_ be kept locked up if she didn't reveal her secrets, but at least she might have the advantage of surprise. She had her wand back and none of them seemed to be the wiser. Her main priority at this point, was no longer getting back to her friends, but keeping everyone safe. Her eyes darted to her desk in the corner.

The Conduit Crystals she'd been experimenting with were still sitting on the table where she'd left them. Averting her gaze quickly, she sighed.

"Miss Granger?"

Hermione raised her eyes to Mcgonagall's bepeckled ones, "I wish I could, Professor. I really do, as it stands, I believe telling you would only make the situation worse."

Hermione's eyes slid over to Harry and Ron, standing on the far side of her room. Both equally awkward in their stances as they watched her. Harry with a baffled confusion and Ron with suspicion.

Hermione swung her gaze back around to the matronly Professor and the tall dark gentleman in front of her. "You can try using legilmency on me but I won't be caught off guard this time. My memories are my own and I _will_ keep you out."

She pinned them with a hard stare and she saw Harry flush and duck his head from the corner of her eye.

 _Good_. She thought. _He should feel guilty_.

"It seems we're at an impasse." Kingsley's gravelly voice spoke.

"It would seem so." Hermione said.

"Please be aware, we can't let you leave Miss Granger. I know you gave your word to these..people. But right now our top priority is the safety of The Order and all who reside here. Especially, you."

Hermione clicked her tongue, "I'm aware."

Kingsley nodded, "Good. We will revisit this again tomorrow. In the meantime, you are restricted to this room."

"What about my floo powder?" Hermione asked.

Kingsley regarded her shrewdly, "Arthur and I have been examining it. It is quite extraordinary. That it allows for unlimited floo access is a dangerous weapon. We will be confiscating it."

Harry and Ron blinked in surprise from the corner while Hermione scowled. _Brilliant_.

"You will of course be allowed visitors. We wouldn't keep you confined up here alone, meals will be brought to you three times a day. You have access to a bathroom from your room so that shouldn't be a problem for you."

"How generous." She sneered.

"Miss Granger, please understand." Mcgonagall pleaded with her.

Hermione bristled, she'd always liked her head of house. She was a remarkable woman and Hermione had always regarded her with the highest respect.

Hermione sighed, "What about Hannah?"

"We will be questioning Miss Abbott tomorrow."

With a nod, Kingsley swept from the room, Mcgonagall soon after, giving Hermione an apologetic fleeting glance before departing.

Harry stood, avoiding Hermione's eye, "I'm sorry it has to be like this Hermione, I really am."

Hermione regarded him shrewdly, "That's the thing though, isn't it Harry? It doesn't _have_ to be like this. You could just trust my words, but you won't."

Harry raised his eyes, "I _can't_ lose you, Hermione, I just can't. Whatever it is your hiding. We _will_ find out."

With that he swept from the room and Hermione was left alone with Ron.

He was watching her closely, "Its true you know."

She raised a brow, "What is?"

"You're different." He said pining her with his cobalt stare.

"You're snarky and sarcastic. You would have never spoken like that to your elders before."

Hermione sighed, Ron maybe be a twit who fancied himself in love with her, but he was still one of her oldest and closest friends.

"Maybe I'm just frustrated that you're all basically accusing me of underhanded intentions."

"Its more than that." He said, "What happened to you, Hermione?"

She looked up to meet his stare, "I wish I could tell you, I really do. But it's not the right time. Not now." She sighed, "You should probably leave."

Watching her quietly a moment more, Ron nodded his head before striding from the room.

Hermione sighed. She'd have to put her plans into play tonight. Hannah didn't have the kind of mental defenses that she had. If they questioned her, there would be no hiding. Taking a deep breath, Hermione changed into more appropriate clothing, exchanging her lovely blue dress for jeans and a sweater with heavy boots.

Walking around her room, she found her beaded bag from her camping days with the undetectable extension charm. Quickly, she swept about her room, shoving items and clothing into the bag. When she came to her Conduit Crystals she bit her lip before reaching out and placing all of the chunky white stones inside the bag.

Sweeping her hair back into a tight pony, Hermione mentally went through everything she had taken, checking if there was anything else she'd need. She didn't anticipate coming back to Grimmauld Place anytime soon.

Looking at her desk, she sat down and slowly began to pen a letter to Harry. She didn't want them to part on bad terms, she wanted to be able to talk with him, she wanted to be able to return once she'd completed the stones and help them end this war once and for all.

Slinging her bag over her shoulder, Hermione crept over to her door. It was predictably locked. She tested it for wards. Slowly and carefully bringing them down until with a soft click, she was free.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thoughts? xo


	36. Chapter 36

**HANNAH**

She'd been locked up in this room for almost two days now. Come midday tomorrow she was supposed to have been on her way back to The Plantation with Hermione, now she had no idea what to expect.

Neville had kept her company for the most part, reporting back to her what had been said. They suspected Hermione was under the influence of a Succubi or Vampire. When Hannah snorted at this theory, Neville turned the full power of his puppy dog eyes onto her, "You obviously know what's going on, Han. I don't see why you don't just tell them."

Hannah had brought her knees up under her chin before wrapping her arms around her legs, giving Neville a wide eyed look of her own, "I promised I wouldn't betray their trust, Neville. These people saved my life in every way. I owe them that much."

Neville had nodded in understanding before retreating, promising to bring more news on his next visit.

Now Hannah was lying in her bed, staring unseeingly at the ceiling. Trinkets were scattered about the room, symbols of Ginny's inhabitants and Hannah felt a stab of annoyance as she rolled over, attempting to clear her mind once more.

It wasn't until after midnight that Hannah heard noises coming from outside her door. Sitting up from the bed and creeping over slowly, she pressed her ear to the wood just as something began to push the door inwards.

Hannah jumped back quickly, jolting in surprise when she came face to face with Hermione.

" _Surprise_." Hermione said sarcastically.

Hannah blinked, " _Hermione?_ What are you _doing_ up here? How did you get out of your room?"

Hermione chuckled softly, closing the door and turning back to Hannah, "We have a friend in the know."

When Hannah continued looking baffled, she explained, "How many Veela's do _you_ know?"

Hannah blinked, blanching, " _Fleur?_ She let you out?"

"Better."

Hannah stood staring blankly when Hermione held out her wand.

"Hermione-"

"We need to move quickly. If we're caught, I honestly don't know what Draco or The Order will do."

Hannah was beginning to panic, "How are we supposed to get out? Kingsley has the floo powder."

"Don't worry, I have a plan. I am going to get the floo powder back first."

_"How?!"_

Hermione pulled off her jacket and unwound her bag, holding it out, "I'm going to need you to take this." Hannah accepted the bag hesitantly. "Put it over your shoulder."

Hermione tapped her wand to a pretty platinum bracelet around he wrist, unclasping it and wrapping it around Hannah's wrist, "This is a portkey Draco gave me, I'm going to sneak into Kingsley's room and find the powder. When I come back, I need you to grab me and say the incantation. I don't know if I'll have anyone following me so you'll have to be quick. Can you do that Hannah?"

Hannah blanched, "If you have a portkey why don't we just _leave?_  Why do we _need_ the powder? Hermione let's just go! Before anyone notices you're gone!"

"Listen to me Hannah, that powder would give them a direct link to The Plantation if they were somehow able to track where we flooed from."

Hannah went white, "Exactly, that's why I need to get it back before we can leave, I'll be quick, no one will even notice I'm there."

Hannah frowned, "Do you have an invisibility cloak?"

Hermione grimaced, "Not exactly."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hmmmmm?


	37. Chapter 37

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WOW! I am OVERWHELMED with the responses I've received to this story. Thank you all for being such lovely people. I've been writing like a fiend this wekend as the weathers been completely shit, keeping everyone indoors. I've got a lot more chapters written so don't worry! I won't be leaving you hanging. This Chapter goes out to Moonsong78 whose been reviewing since I started writing this story and who is maybe too perceptive for her own good. ;) Or maybe I'm just really obvious? I have no idea, either way, enjoy! xo

**HERMIONE**

" _Oh!_ Hermione, you're so pretty!"

Hermione huffed and Hannah chuckled. "You're chest just got all puffy."

Hermione balked, letting out an involuntary trilling coo.

Hannah smiled, hand covering her mouth to smother her giggles, "It makes sense, you're the peacemaker after all." Hermione cocked her head, "Well, its rather symbolic of your character isn't it? The dove carried the olive branch, its associated with Venus, the roman goddess of love and beauty. I think it suits you."

 _Huh_ , Hermione mused, _I've never thought of it like that_. For the most part when Hermione had first completed her Animagus form she had been cowed and irritated by her transformation into a small white dove. She just couldn't believe after so much time and effort she'd turned into a flying rodent! She'd carried that mandrake leaf around in her mouth for a _month!_ She had forgone brushing her teeth so she wouldn't swallow it for a whole bloody month, and she'd waited twelve weeks for an electrical storm to show up only to become a white bloody carrier pigeon.

"Should I leave the door open in case you need a fast exit?"

Hermione flew over to the door, perching on the ground and stretching her wing out to demonstrate that she should leave it open a crack.

Hannah nodded, "I'll stand by the door, just _coo_ or something so I know your coming."

Bowing her head quickly in understanding, Hermione skipped back so Hannah could open the door for her.

"Good luck." She whispered as Hermione hopped through the door.

Looking at the hallway in front of her, Hermione took a deep breathe before spreaching her wings and pushing into the air. Flying had taken a long time for her to get the hang of, but she felt a lot more secure in her Animagus form than she ever had on a broom. Soaring quietly up the hallway and down around the stair case until she came to the door to Kingsley's bedroom.

Cocking her head, she weighed her options. If she reverted to her human form her risk of discovery was much higher, unfortunately she needed her hands to look for the powder.

Sighing, Hermione slowly grew from a small white bird back into a witch, taking out her wand to test for wards. Finding none, she cast a silent _Alohomora_ before slipping through the door.

Kingsley Shacklebolts room was filled with books and papers littering every available surface. The wizard in question was a still and silent lump facing the wall on the far side of the room. Biting her lip, Hermione cast a silent lumos, using her hand to dim the light as she searched over the desks with her eyes until she came across a cauldron in amongst the clutter. Scanning the random supplies scattered around it until her eyes zeroed in on a small, black leather bag.

 _Jackpot_.

Hermione crept closer to the bag when the floorboards beneath her feet creaked loudly.

Gulping, she froze, turning towards the sleeping wizard who had rolled over and was now facing her directly. Hermione bit her lip, moving inches at a time until her hand was closed around the bag. When she looked back he was still in a deep slumber.

Breathing deeply through her nose, Hermione crept closer to the door when the floorboards creaked again, cursing under her breathe Hermione cast a finite on her wand and pulled open the door quickly when she heard the sleeping wizard stirring. Shifting quickly, she was once again a small white dove.

Picking up the strap of the pouch in her beak tightly, she met Kingsley's bleary eyed stare, " _What the_ -"

Before he could finish she was off, pumping her wings as fast as they could carry her under the weight of the pouch. She could hear yelling coming up the stairs as she pushed herself harder. When she saw the cracked opening of Ginny's bedroom door she grabbed the bag in her talons, freeing her mouth so she could call and signal Hannah.

The door swung open just as Hermione soared closer, Hannah's face ashen as she grabbed for Hermione's airborne little body, clutching her tightly before yelling, " _portus!"_ Just as the door slammed open with a bang.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those of you who don't know, I've researched Animagus's and pretty much every disembodied component of this story. That means all of my references and facts on magical society are true. Or that I cheated and read all the info on Pottermore. Don't hate me! In Order to become an Animagus they really DO have to carry a mandrake leaf around in their mouth for for a month without taking it out to eat or sleep. Then they have to wait for an electrical storm to begin the incantation, there's a lot more to the process but I didn't want to get into too much detail for obvious reasons.
> 
> Tomato, tomahto.


	38. Chapter 38

**HERMIONE**

They landed heavily with a wet smack in the mud.

" _Oooff!_ " Hannah grunted, the sensation of being sucked through space had off set Hermione's shift back into a human, making her land hard on top of the blonde.

"Sorry." Hermione murmured, pushing up and stumbling awkwardly. She held out her hand for Hannah to take, hissing when she gripped her wrist.

Hannah dropped her hand, pulling herself up, looking worried, "Hermione is your hand okay?"

Hermione flexed it, flinching slightly at the sharp sting, "I think I sprained it."

"Oh that's not too bad, we can fix that pretty easily." Hannah said relieved, "Hermione I don't know how you did it, but you are without a doubt, the craziest witch I've ever met."

"You did an impossible thing. You're made of extraordinary magic, Hermione Granger."

Hermione smiled brightly.

Hannah huffed, laughing, "I guess we had better head back."

Hermione looked around, there were trees everywhere.

"It's this way." Hannah said, walking off through the trees.

"How do you know?" Hermione asked, stepping after her with her hand cradled.

"This is where I landed when I used Draco's portkey to escape Hogwarts."

Hermione looked at Hannah from the corner of her eye, "What happened?"

"Draco hasn't told you?" Hannah asked surprised.

"He told me that a friend helped him escape, I'd had no idea it was you, until you said you'd been held prisoner with him."

Hannah bit her lip, "I was captured by snatchers, they took me to Hogwarts." Hermione watched her intently, "They toyed with me a bit at first before they took me to the dungeons."

She looked Hermione in the eyes, "Draco was already there. His clothes were in rags and he looked half dead. He'd been a prisoner for ten months before I arrived."

Hermione gasped, "He was chained to the wall with magic stunting cuffs, he'd attempted to escape before and they didn't want him going anywhere. He told me….He told me what they were going to do to me."

Hermione's eyes shot to Hannah's far expression, "He told me to give them what they wanted. That they would leave me alone if I didn't put up much of a fight. So I did. And he was right. They grew tired of me pretty quickly."

Hannah became alert once more, watching Hermione intently, "When they got bored of me, they went into Draco's cell."

She gulped, "They tortured him, right next to me, just a few feet away through the bars. I had to listen as they hit him with Crucios and stinging and burning hexes right next to me." Hannah blinked, "I could _smell_ his flesh burning." she whispered.

Hermione was frozen, unable to respond as Hannah went on, "When they left he went in and out of consciousness, screaming. When he finally became lucid I'd almost lost all hope. We escaped not long after that, we almost didn't make it, but he made sure I knew how to get out in case we got separated."

Hannah stopped walking, watching Hermione with watery eyes, "I owe him my life. I didn't think I'd be able to be around people anymore, but when he brought me here these people didn't know me, they didn't coddle me or tell me everything was going to be okay. It wasn't, and it still isn't. But I'm holding it together. Theo's a big help, he grows these plants that help me relax when I'm feeling anxious. He doesn't judge and he doesn't ask questions, he just sits with me and let's me talk whenever I feel like talking."

Hermione gulped, "That's good, that you have someone."

Hannah smiled, "It is."

"What kind of plants does he grow to help you relax?"

Hannah blushed, "It’s a muggle plant, sort of an alternative medicine you could say."

Hermione's brow furrowed, "What kind of plants could muggles grow that are strong enough to counter anxiety symptoms?"

Hannah's face was burning red and Hermione's frown deepened when suddenly her eyes popped open wide, " _Hannah!_ "

"Yes?" She said weakly.

"Have you been _smoking Marijuanna?"_

Hannah blushed furiously, "It really _does_ help with the anxiety, and my appetite. And sleeping. I'm not as functional as everyone seems to think. Theo gets that, it's why he offered to help me."

"How the hell does Theodore Nott, know about muggle drugs?"

Hannah smiled fondly, "Theo's very spiritual, he likes to experiment with natural psychotropics."

Hermione walked on with wide bewildered eyes, _it was amazing what you just didn't know about people._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay so things are getting a little fluffy in this chapter. I'm not sure about people's belief about certain things and really it's all in good fun. Peace! xo


	39. Chapter 39

**BLAISE**

Blaise was in a deep sleep when he was woken by a loud crack.

Sitting up, Blaise looked around wildly, Daphne who'd been sleeping next to him scowled through slitted eyes. When his gaze landed on his childhood House Elf, he slumped back in exhaustion.

"Whispy is sorry Master Blaise's, I is. But Missus Hermione and Missus Hannah are at the front door." The small powder blue elf squeaked in her high soprano.

Blaise blinked, and Daphne sat up, holding the sheets around her chest.

"What time is it?" He asked, bewildered.

"It's two o'clock in the morning, Master Blaise's, sir." Whispy chirped.

He looked at Daphne, "Looks like I owe Adrian fifty Galleons."

Daphne smacked him upside the head, "Go and let them in you Ponce!" She got up, dragging the sheet with her and slipping on a robe slung over the chair by the bed. Blaise covered himself with his hands, looking at Whispy awkwardly while the small Elf watched wide eyed, waiting for instruction.

"Pass me that robe over there would you, Whispy?" The elf nodded enthusiastically, rushing around to get the garment for her master.

Manouvering awkwardly, he pulled the robe on, keeping himself covered while Daphne stood with her hands on her hips. Whispy eagerly awaiting instruction.

"You can go ahead and let them in Whispy, we'll meet you downstairs." Blaise said.

Nodding quickly, the elf disappeared with a loud crack.

Daphne glanced at Blaise speculatively, "Don't you think it's weird that your elf just stood there watching you dress?"

Blaise blushed, "Whispy used to dress me when I was a child, she doesn't understand personal boundaries."

Daphne sniggered as they made their way down the hallway, to the staircase to meet the witches that had been gone for almost two days.

"I wonder why they're back so early, and at this time of night. Something must have happened." Daphne mused.

Blaise grew thoughtful, "It can't be anything too bad, Whispy would have said something."

"How is it she was even awake this late?"

Blaise shrugged, "Whispy likes to dust things at night, I woke up once to get a glass of pumpkin juice when I was a kid and I found her in the drawing room, polishing all the family photos. I've caught her doing it a few times over the years."

Daphne blanched, "That's oddly cute in a creepy sort of way."

Blaise flicked her nose, "Don't be hating on my elf, she loves me."

Daphne scowled, batting his hand away, "She's the only one who does."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What will they make of the girls sudden return?


	40. Chapter 40

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all so much for all the love this story is receiving. I'm throwing another shoutout to MotherofBulls for her lovely words. Honestly, I can't express how touched I am with some of the reviews I've received. You're all beautiful.
> 
> PS: I'm posting early because Thrones is FINALLY airing tonight! GAHH! If you watch Game of Thrones or you've read the books, you'll understand why I'm about to break into song and dance. 
> 
> Without further ado...

**DRACO**

When Draco woke up he could feel something different. There was a tangible change in the air and he searched his senses for what it was.

 _Granger_. She was back. The chord connecting them was snapped tightly with their close proximity. He could feel her exhaustion almost immediately as soon as he recognised what it was.

Draco dressed quickly and swept through the halls, letting the chord pull him forward and lead him to his witch.

When he found that he was being led towards the lounge his brow hitched in surprise. What was she doing back so early? And why was she in the lounge of all places?

When he stepped inside, Draco was confronted with the image of a half naked Blaise sitting on a bench at the bar. Wearing a robe and boxers, cradling a tumbler of whiskey while his mother, Daphne and Astoria were sitting around the two recently departed witches.

All conversation halted when he entered the room, Blaise blinked up at him blearily, raising his glass to Draco in a salut, throwing his head back and emptying the contents.

"You're back early." He drawled.

Hermione frowned, "Things didn't exactly go as I'd hoped. We were confined to our rooms after an unfortunate turn of events. We had to escape in the middle of the night."

Draco's brow rose higher, "You _escaped_ The Orders headquarters to come back?"

Hermione held his stare defiantly, "I said I would, didn't I?"

Draco watched her silently a moment more before turning nonchalantly to Blaise, "You owe Adrian fifty Galleons."

Blaise scowled, "Don't remind me."

Hermione blanched, "Did you _bet_ on whether we'd come back or not?"

Blaise scratched his head, "If it makes you feel any better, Draco didn't place a bet."

Hermione's gaze swung around to the silent blonde watching her stoically.

He murmured, "I knew you'd be back, hardly seemed like a fair gamble."

Hermione blushed, ducking her head and avoiding his gaze while Narcissa trilled, "How is your wrist feeling now, dear?"

Hermione smiled gratefully at the woman, "Much better, thank you."

Narcissa smiled happily.

"What happened to your wrist Granger?" Draco asked.

Hermione blushed again, while Hannah explained. "Hermione got our wands and went back for the floo powder you made us. She had to make a run for it when Kingsley woke up and saw her in his room. We portkeyed back here, Hermione was kind of mid flight and landed on top of me, she sprained her wrist in the fall."

Hermione looked back at Draco, swallowing as he examined her closely with a blank expression.

"You are quite unexpected, aren't you Granger?"

"I said I'm a witch of my word, didn't I?"

"Indeed." He murmured, walking around to take the seat across from her. Her bright light drawing him in after just a short time in the darkness without her. He fixated on her silently as she talked amongst the people scattered about the room, almost like a fetish or an addiction, Draco couldn't tear his eyes away.


	41. Chapter 41

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Sorry for the wait, I needed a couple of days outside of my head after I wrote so much. I am a grammar and punctuation nazi and it drives me insane when I see mistakes in my work. Alliteration also pisses me off so I spent the last two days doing a complete editorial overhaul on the story, a little bit of rewording and corrections to make it a smoother experience. :) I'm giving you four new chapters to make up for lost time, a gift for all the beautiful words people have been leaving me, thank you all! send me a line and let me know what you think! Xoxo

**HARRY**

"The question is, _How_ did she get the wands? _How_ did she get through the house undetected?" Zacharias exclaimed from the back of the room, seemingly over his recent humiliation. Dozens of Order members once again packed into the kitchen like sardines.

"It doesn't matter how it happened, only that it did." Intoned Kingsley.

"What are we supposed to do? She could be leading them to us as we speak." Padma Patil spoke up in her high soprano, Terry Boot was sitting next to her and gave her hand a soft squeeze.

"This is _Hermione_ we're talking about, Hermione who leads most of the missions around here. Hermione who teaches the ickle kiddies how to wave their wands. She wouldn't betray us like that." Terry assured her.

"Exactly." Harry spoke out loudly, "Which is why we must have faith that she won't abandon us, or the cause. She left me a letter, denoting her loyalty to us and The Order. She wrote that she is going to continue working to help us with her plans. Only from an undisclosed location. In the event of an intrusion, all persons will be confined to the house. No more missions outside Grimmauld Place will take place, until a time we can identify whether or not Hermione's captors are an active threat."

"And 'ow do you plan on determining that, exactly?" Fleur spoke up from her perch next to her husband against the wall.

Harry swung around to look at the pale beauty, _she's quite lovely_. Shaking his head, he said, "Luna saw the bite marks up close. I got a brief glimpse of them and the creature in Hermione's mind, we'll be going through books to try and identify what it is and how to defeat it."

Fleur blanched, "What makes you so sure it's a _malicious_ being?"

Harry frowned, "From the books, we've thus far determined that the creature is either an Incubi, Vampire hybrid or a Selkie. Any of which would have less than honourable intentions."

Fleur raised her brow, "And you're _sure_ it's not anything else?"

Harry took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes, "We can't know for sure until we've matched up the incisor marks with something in the books. Luna and I are the only ones with a clear image to go off of. We haven't had much luck so far, hopefully we'll find something that fits soon."

Murmurs began to fill the crowd as people began speculating on what could have influenced the strong witch so easily.

Harry threw Ron and Ginny a desperate look, Ron sighed and stood, taking a deep breathe before yelling, "Oi! Keep it down. Were trying to have a civilised meeting here. If anyone else has anything to say, say it now. Otherwise scram."

People looked around at their neighbours and the chatter began to build once more as people began slowly filing out of the room.

Harry thumped down heavily at his seat. Ginny, Ron, Neville, Arthur, Molly, Kingsley, Mcgonagall and a recently returned Rufus Scrimegor, were amongst the few left scattered about the kitchen.

"I don't understand why miss Granger would find the need to keep these people's identity a secret. If they were indeed our allies, they wouldn't find the need for such secrecy." Scrimgeour said.

"Hermione didn't say they were our allies." Harry supplied, "She said they were innocent people hiding from the war. We can't arm ourselves on that alone. What kind of people would that make us?"  
  
"Smart." The aging wizard snapped, "If they're so innocent, why is she still with them? Why did they not return her to us immediately?"

Harry bit his lip, "Firenze said she'd been bound by something, that her 'life tide' was changing course. Maybe she made a promise to these people and she's somehow obligated to uphold it."

Scrimgeour huffed and Mcgonagall stepped forward, "Enough, Rufus. Miss Granger is by far the most intelligent and talented witch I've come across. If she has told mister Potter she remains loyal to The Order and plans on finishing her Conduit Crystals, then I guarantee you she will follow through."

He eyed her shrewdly, "And how could you possibly know that? How can we be expected to let our play of the final battle, rest on the shoulders of an absentee girl."

"Because," Harry said, "in all the years I've known Hermione, she's never once broken a promise to me."

Ginny stood up behind him, holding a piece of parchment, she cleared her throats before reading it aloud, "Harry, I'm sorry it has to be this way. But I couldn't bare it if anyone was hurt because of my foolishness. I've taken the Crystals with me. Don't worry, I will finish them, if it's the last thing I do. I promise, once I've figured out how to get them working properly, I will return and we can finally end this terrible war." She looked up, "Does that sound like a traitor to you?" Handing the paper to Harry, he folded it up and slipped it into his pocket.

Scrimgeour glared around the room angrily before storming out, heavy robes swinging around his greying figure and his limp slowing his movements significantly.

Arthur stood up, pulling Molly with him, "I think it's time you kids went to bed."

"A goodnights sleep will probably do us wonders." Molly said. 

Ushering them all out, they trooped up the stairs in single file, each going to their own rooms under the watchful eyes of Mister and Missus Weasley.

When Harry got back to his room and the door clicked behind him, he turned on the light and walked over to his bed, reaching into his pocket, he pulled out the letter Hermione had written him. Reading it again carefully.

_Harry,  
I'm sorry it has to be this way, but I couldn't bare it if anyone was hurt by my foolishness. I've taken the stones with me. Don't worry, I will finish them, if it's the last thing I do. I promise, once I figure out how to get them working properly, I will return and we can finally end this terrible war. With love and affection._

_Hermione._

Sighing, he folded the paper, placing it on the side of his bed before pulling another piece of parchment from his pocket, this one much smaller than the other.

_Harry,  
I don't want you to think I've abandoned you. I've enchanted this parchment with a mirroring charm. It's a two way parchment, write to me. I'll receive your messages on my own parchment and will write back when I can. I love you Harry, don't forget that._

Harry sighed, looking at the parchment for an indiscernible amount of time before shuffling over to his desk in the corner. Picking up a quil and dipping it in some ink, he scrawled out, _Why did you leave Hermione?_

He watched as the ink sank into the page and disappeared, sitting at the desk well into the night, watching the paper closely before falling asleep in his chair.


	42. Chapter 42

**HERMIONE**

"Basically, its a force field with negating properties?" Hermione asked, looking over Draco's shoulder as he stirred the concoction bubbling in his cauldron slowly.

"Somewhat, hand me those lace wings." Hermione plucked the jar from the shelf he'd pointed to, handing them over and watching as he ground them up with a mortar and pestle.

"I'm attempting is to create an object imbued with enough magical energy to form an anti magic dome when activated. Almost like a Fairy Circle. Outside foreign magic cannot penetrate them, unless it is within the circle."

"Fascinating." Hermione said in a captivated voice as she read over the notes from his previous trial and errors. It was incredible what he'd been able to achieve.

"You managed to cause a magic outage in the gardens for two hours?" Hermione asked impressed.

"I did, mother was none too pleased. It killed quite a lot of her out of season flowers. She made me restore every plant before she'd let me leave."

Hermione snickered. She'd slowly gotten used to the day to day rhythm of the Plantation over the last week. She had received Harry's message and had yet to reply. It was too soon, she was still smarting from his distrust and she needed the time to sort out her emotional state before she could let herself confront his.

"How did Potter take your impromptu return?"

Hermione looked at Draco sharply, "I've been back a week and you haven't once asked me about my time away."

"I assumeed you would tell me anything of importance when you were ready. As it's been a week, I confess, my curiosity is getting the better of me."

Hermione watched him with amused eyes, "You waited a whole week to ask me how my trip was?"

He clicked his tongue, "I've waited a week for you to _tell_ me how your trip was."

Hermione became somber, "It started out fine. Everything seemed great. Until Luna came in."

Draco glanced up from his cauldron, "Lovegood?"

She nodded, "Luna noticed your bite marks on my neck and everyone freaked out. They started jumping to ridiculous conclusions and I felt it wasn't safe if I revealed what you are anymore."

Draco nodded thoughtfully, "Herd mentality. One panics, then they all do."

Hermione punched his arm, "Don't compare my friends to sheep."

"I wasn't, I was comparing them to cattle, much more stupid and easily persuaded."

She punched him again.

"This is beginning to border on domestic abuse, Granger."

She flushed, "I'm _not_ your wife _or_ your girlfriend. The Order is fighting to stop this war. They want peace for everyone."

He raised his brow, eyes on his potion, "While I agree that it would be best for everyone if The Order did win this war, it would _not_ result in peace for all."

She blinked, "What do you mean? Of course it would."

He pinned her with cold pale eyes, "Do you really think those close to the people on the wrong side of this war are going to come out of this unscathed? Open up those pretty brown eyes Granger, the world is a cruel place. It will always be a cruel place. People don't have it in them to be completely compassionate." His eyes roved over her face, "or at least, most of us don't."

Hermione flushed, looking away from his penetrating gaze, she felt like he could see straight through to her soul with those icy eyes. She didn't think she'd ever be completely comfortable with the way he looked at her. She felt naked and unnerved whenever she felt his stare.

Biting her lip, Hermione looked over to her bag before swinging back around to examine Draco carefully. He was focused intently on his potion once more. Whatever thing held his attention at any one time, he seemed to examine with an intensity that it left her curious. At least when it wasn't directed at her.

"I can trust you, can't I Draco?" She asked suddenly in the quiet.

His eyes flickered up towards her once more as he watched her stoically.

"I mean, really trust you?" She asked pushing off her perch on the desk.

"I'd like to think so."

Hermione bit her lip, "what do you know about Conduit Crystals?"


	43. Chapter 43

**DRACO**

After she'd shown him her Conduit Crystals, stones she'd been experimenting on, Hermione had gone on to explain how she was trying to imbue them with the force of muggle explosives so that they could take out the Dark Lord and his followers in one fell swoop.

After explaining the technicalities of muggle bombs, he'd looked at her impressed. This witch was a deadly force, a lethal weapon with a terrible reckoning unleashed on those who committed injustices. Her fiery flame glowed brighter within his eyes.

"If I could somehow imbue the Crystals with the force required, then according to Newton's second law of motion, force equals mass times acceleration, I should be able to link them with a detonator to simulataneously set off the Crystals, making everything in its radius go boom."

She bit her lip, turning from the Crystals, "So, what do you think?"

"I was under the impression Potter was the chosen one."

"What?"

"Potter is the boy who lived, destined to defeat the Dark Lord, you've summarised his defeat in a few sentences. I don't see why Potter would be required for this to work."

Hermione flushed, "Harry's been through so much, if it wasn't for him, Voldemort would have taken over the world several times over by now. He's the only thing standing between our world and an eternal darkness."

"That's a bit morbid isn't it?"

"It's the truth." She said plainly.

"Perhaps," Draco mused, "look at it from this perspective, if The Dark Lord had never heard the prophecy about Potter, then this whole war would have never happened."

"Ah," Hermione exclaimed, "but if he never tried to kill Harry then he wouldn't have been defeated all those years ago, and you and I would have grown up in a world ruled by Voldemort."

"It appears Potter isn't completely useless after all."

Hermione punched him in the arm.

"you're getting far too comfortable assaulting me, Granger."

"And you're far too stoic for my liking."

"I could be more affectionate if you'd like."

"That's fine." Hermione skipped back, "You're perfect the way you are."

Draco smirked, "I could say the same about you, Granger."

She flushed.

"I think I'm going to go and spend the afternoon with Hannah." She stood up from her seat and began packing her things together in a pile before heading for the doors.

"She's probably in the gardens with Mother and Elenore by now." Draco called.

Hermione waved her hand over her shoulder dismissively before slipping out the door, Draco watched the place that she had disappeared from and smirked, looking back at his cauldron and stirring counterclockwise.


	44. Chapter 44

**HANNAH**

"I just don't think it would be something you'd enjoy Narcissa, really." Hannah said painfully.

Daphne and Pansy snickering at her sides while the girls about the garden all trilled in scattered conversations.

"She thinks you're too old to try it, Cisaa." Elenore chimed from her place across the table.

" _No!_ No, really! It's for medicinal purposes, I wouldn't want you having any adverse reactions."

Hannah's face had gone completely red, while Pansy and Daphne sniggered.

"Oh go on, Cissa. You only live once." Elenore prodded.

Narcissa looked thoughtful, "It doesn't cause hallucinations does it?"

Hannah was turning purple, "Of course not, Theo gives it to Abbott so she can chill out. You'd probably enjoy it." Pansy said with sincerity.

Hannah shot her a glare, while pansy smirked behind her teacup. Draco would kill her if she let these idiots get his mother high.

"It's for of my anxiety, it helps me cope." She explained, exasperated.

"Drugs help everyone cope, dear." Elenore intoned, sipping daintily from her wine glass.

Hannah groaned, "Really, I really don't think it's a good idea."

"What isn't a good idea?" Hannah looked around to see Hermione coming up the pathway through the chattering adolescent girls.

_She'd been saved._

"Hermione, maybe you could explain to Narcissa why trying Cannabis is a bad idea."

Hermione did a double take, eyes like saucers as she hesitantly sat down beside Hannah, looking much like she was regretting it.

_Too late. You're stuck now_ , Hannah thought, grabbing ahold of Hermione's wrist tightly, holding her down, lest she try to make an escape.

"Narcissa," Hermione said awkwardly, still not used to addressing the older woman by her first name, "Marijuanna is a plant muggles use for recreational drug use. It's also used medicinally in several countries to treat disorders and disease."

Narcissa looked thoughtful, "What healing abilities does it hold exactly?"

Hermione flushed, "I'm not really aware, muggles doctors and scientists experiment with it to see how best to use it for treatment, I would guess."

Everyone was looking at Hermione in interest now, "What's a doc-hor and a sign test?" Elenore asked.

Hermione explained, "A doctor is like a muggle medi witch or Healer, a scientist is more like a potions or alchemy expert."

"Like my Draco?" Narcissa intoned curiously.

"Sort of." Hermione said lamely.

Narcissa frowned, "Perhaps I should ask him what he thinks before I try anything."

" _Yes!_ Please do!" Hannah all but yelled.

Elenore huffed, "Don't be a wand in the mud, Cissa. Draco hasn't got a fun bone in his body."

Hermione flushed suddenly and Hannah was becoming desperate, " _Please_ , just talk to Draco about it first. I'm sure he would be able to give you an educated explanation."

Narcissa purses her lips, "I suppose I should, I must say I learnt my lesson with unknown substances after I saw all those leprechauns in the shrubs after Theo gave me those mushrooms."

Hermione's tea camping flying out of her mouth in a jet across the table as she started coughing hard in between deeps breathes. Pansy, Daphne and Elenore all snickering into the cups.

"Are you alright, dear?" Narcissa asked.

Hannah was helping wipe off the front of Hermione's dress with a napkin, grimmacing apologetically while Hermione gaped like a fish.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> At bit of fluffy fun to finish things off. ;) let me know what you think so far! xo


	45. Chapter 45

**FLEUR**

Fleur had been watching them closely for almost a week. They were no closer to figuring out what had happened to Hermione than they were with puzzling out how she'd retrieved her wand. Lucky for Fleur, they had come to the conclusion Hermione was somehow able to escape her room and enter Harry's undetected. Fleur snorted. Hermione was brilliant, but Fleur recently found herself sometimes questioning the intelligence of some of The Order members.

Currently she was watching in between shelves as Harry focused intently on the several books open in a circle around him on the floor. Fleur felt a pang of pity for the boy. She had come to know Harry fairly well since they had all become cohabitators, and he was unlucky in life. All of the horrible things that happened to any of them, Harry bore the weight of it on his shoulders. She knew he felt like a failure, but she also saw a perseverance you just didn't see in most people.

Fleur decided it was time that she start prodding them in the correct direction. They'd dismissed all Fae possibilities early on, assuming no Fae would be strong enough to have such a hold over their friend.

Sweeping though the shelves, Fleur eventually came upon a section she knew would be helpful. Plucking a tome from the shelf, she read the title, _Lives and Follies of The Fae_.

 _A bit dated perhaps,_ Fleur bit her lip. It would have to do.

Looking around the library she caught sight of Luna running her fingers along the spines of some books in the far corner. Smiling brightly, Fleur walked over to the girl, levitating the book to a shelf behind the blondes head. Making sure to leave the binding sticking out precariously before walking over.

"'Ow are you today Luna?"

The vacant blonde turned to her, "Oh, Hello Fleur. I'm fine thank you, just looking for a new book to read."

"Oh? Maybe I can 'elp you find something?" At that moment, Fleur used wandless magic to push the book she'd levitated over Luna's shoulder, off of the shelf.

Luna blinked, "Did you hear something?"

Fleur grit her teeth, "I think something fell off of the shelf behind you."

Turning slowly, Luna bent down to pick up the book from the floor, examining it closely.

"This seems like it could be interesting." Luna mused.

Fleur grinned, "It looks like you won't be needing my 'elp after all."

 


	46. Chapter 46

**LUNA**

Life at headquarters had gotten quite dull and clostrophobic since Hermione's impromptu departure. And now Luna's safe haven was constantly being invaded.

Harry and others coming in and out of the library all the time, searching through the books for answers. Luna was reading her latest discovery when she noticed Harry in the corner of the room. He'd been researching nonstop since Hermione's latest disappearance.

Sighing, Luna returned to her book, she'd just finished a chapter on marshland fairies when she turned the page.

_The traits and habits of Veela_

_Curious_ , Luna thought.

She'd just finished reading about Veela scenting when she turned the page. They were quite interesting creatures.

When Luna came face to face with a picture of a neck, familiar incisor marks lining the skin, she blinked.

Leaning in closer, Luna began to read the words below the image.

_Veela mating habits are a little known commodity amongst wizards. Extremely private creatures, attempts to study them in their environments have bore few results. Upon maturity, Veela undergo a physical transformation In which all beastly traits periodically morph over the body. Described by some as an extruciating experience that can last for days. Once the transition has completed, Veela are once more able to function as any other humanoid. Although, once a bond-mate is identified, males often undergo a manic craze until the bond is sated. An instinctual trait to ensure propagation. Oftentimes, males will bite their bond-mates, a biologically fuelled function to strengthen a claim. Females are less so ruled by their instincts and are afforded the opportunity to determine a bond-mate by choice. An evolutionary trait that has resulted in a significantly low population of males. While fatally beautiful and alluring to any who come in contact, they are equally deadly when threatened._

_Females are known to adopt avian traits, often mistaken for harpies when enraged or frightened. Glowing blue eyes with a beak and wings. Females have the ability to scream at a pitch so high it can temporarily damage the hearing of those nearby. Often used as a distress call, it can also function as a defence mechanism, allowing the female time to flee her would be pursuers. Females also possess the ability to manifest fire as a physical defensive weapon._

_Males have a much more aggressive stance in demonstrating, especially when it comes to territory. They remain functional people when in their own social environments, but are easily prone to demonstrating when foreign components are introduced, especially once they have imprinted. While females are biologically prone to reproduce with their chosen partners, exhibiting alluring physical attributes to ensure propegation. Males have an instinctual social function that prohibits them from causing their bond-mate emotional distress. Receptive to all of their comforts and desires to ensure a strong bond and to prevent any dissolutions, as it would most assuredly result in insanity. Almost unheard of amongst Veela, mates have been recorded to have broken their magical ties to their Fae counterparts for reasons unknown, in this instance, the Veela would become withdrawn as a manic illness took hold. Driving them to madness._

_Females have the fortune of being able to recover with a new bond-mate in time, another biological imperative to ensure continuation. Males fall short in this instance, as they are tied to one bond-mate for their entire life span. To even the scales, males are armed with a litany of natural defenses to ensure a long and lasting bond. When prone to demonstrating, males exhibit the physical traits of a griffin or sphinx. Compulsive silver eyes, white wings and clawed hands are amongst the few weapons in their arsenal. Unlike females, male Veela's produce currents of energy that can be used to strike out at threats like a lightning blast._

Luna blinked, returning to reality. Looking down at the picture in front of her again, there was no denying that these bite marks were almost identical to the ones she had seen on Hermione's neck.

Humming to herself, Luna picked up her book and stood. She was positive Harry wouldn't like this.


	47. Chapter 47

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey guys! Sorry for the break, I've had a hectic time lately. I won't bore you with the details but I will be updating on a regular basis I promise, this story will be finished. Thank you all so much for you kind words. I'm wondering how many people are still reading this story? Do you love it? Do you hate it? Let me know if your still keeping up with me. Now, I have 3 new chapters for you. I'm still several chapters ahead and I like to keep it that way. I wouldn't want to go through a block and not give you anything for ages. This way I can still give you something in between :)

**HARRY**

"Luna has confirmed it. Hermione's been bound to a Veela, we're sure of it." Harry said in a dubious tone.

He was still having trouble wrapping his head around the concept of his best friend being magically tied to what was essentially, a sexual fairy. He shuddered, thinking about all the things he'd read about Veela mating habits in the book Luna had shown him. His mind flashing to the image of the winged creature, writhing on top of Hermione.

About the room were Ginny and Ron, sitting to Harry's left. Whispering harshly amongst themselves. Arthur and Molly sat at the kitchen table, hands joined, sharing identical looks of concern. Professor McGonagall was standing with her arms crossed, staring Harry down alongside Scrimgeour and Kingsley. Charlie and Bill Weasley sat off to the side of their parents, waiting for Harry to continue.

"How can we be positive on that Potter? If miss Granger was bound to a Veela, why would she not just simply tell us? Why all the secrecy?" Scrimgeour intoned.

Harry straightened, "I have a theory about that." He threw a glance to his left, Ron was staring hard at the table top, arms crossed in front of him on the wood.

"The book goes on to say that all Veela hold the ability to..persuade people. Sort of like hypnotism, males hold a higher level of influence than females. This influence is magnified a hundred fold when used on a bond-mate." Harry glanced down at his feet, "when I was inside Hermione's head, I saw something."

"You already told us that you saw it biting her, Harry." Kingsley said gently.

Harry looked up, "I wasn't completely open about what I saw. When it bit her, they were," Harry blushed, averting his gaze from the onlookers in the room, "they were having sex." He said shakily.

Several gasps could be heard around the room at his hushed declaration. Mcgonagall's eyebrows had risen into her hairline as she shared a shocked look with Kingsley. Scrimgeour was scowling as usual, Arthur and Molly were talking in lowered voices with their eldest sons and Ron and Ginny sat in silence, looking anywhere but each other as Harry had already told them all of this earlier in the library.

It was Bill who was first to talk, standing from his seat, he cleared his throat, "If this is true, maybe I should bring Fleur in here. She's our most viable source on all things Veela after all."

Nods and murmurs of agreement went about the room as Bill dipped his head in acknowledgement before striding from the kitchen.

The habitants of the room sat in silence until they heard the footsteps coming up the hallway.

The door creaked open and Bill held the door for his Veela wife to step into the room. She moved with a poised grace as she stepped up beside Harry.

When Fleur gave him a winning smile Harry blushed, averting his eyes from her face.

"What can I 'elp you with 'Arry?"

Harry cleared his throat, looking back up, "We're trying to determine if it was a Veela that took Hermione and influenced her to leave."

Fleur smiled, "Oh? That is a very interesting theory."

"Is it possible for a male Veela to assert his will to the point of mind control?"

Fleur's smile died, "No, it is not. Veela are only able to plant the suggestion in your mind, if she is bonded, then he would be able to influence her, to a degree."

Ron sat up straight, "She can break it though, can't she?"

Fleur pinned him with a charming smile, staring into his eyes intently, "Why would she want to?"

Ron blinked as he stared at the beautiful French Veela with the charming smile.

"This Veela is compelling her and keeping her captive. We have to do something about it!" Harry intoned angrily, breaking Fleur's spell on Ron who shook his head dazedly.

"I assure you 'Arry, if she is indeed bound to a Veela, 'Ermione is completely safe. 'E would never 'arm 'er."


	48. Chapter 48

**HERMIONE**

"I think I'm just going to read for a while, clear my head." Hermione said. Her hair was hanging in damp loose curls about her shoulders, her face and neck dripping with sweat as she stood over a steaming electric blue potion. Draco looked up from his own cauldron, nodding in acknowledgement before returning to his work.

For the last two days Hermione had been working diligently on perfecting her Crystals. She'd found that the magical energy required was just too great for the stones to hold. Draco had been a shocking help in this regard. He'd given her a book on imbuing magic. In its pages she had found a possible solution. A potion that would bind to objects like a magical magnet for lack of a better term. If she did this correctly, her Conduit Crystals just might be able to harness the magical energy required for her bomb.

Sighing, Hermione pulled herself up onto the bench across from Draco. Grabbing her latest book, she cracked it open to the page she'd marked. Looking inside, the parchment she had linked to the one she left with Harry was lying pliant on the page, staring up at her accusingly.

_Why did you leave Hermione?_

Hermione sighed, tearing her eyes away from the page to glance over at Draco. Currently brewing a bone regeneration potion for Daphne who had come to him complaining of too many children with fractured bones from their out of control quiditch games, now they had run out of Skele-Gro and could he please brew them a temporary alternative until they had the time to buy more.

He was focused intently on the yellow-green concoction he had been brewing studiously. It was getting darker quickly and Hermione grew more and more impressed with Draco's skills. He really was quite intelligent. Sometimes she mused he might be even smarter than her, but she was loathe to admit that, even internally.

Suddenly she was pulled from her train of thought when she noticed the parchment lying prone in her open book was beginning to form new words. She watched as Harry's previous words disappeared to be replaced with new ones.

_I Know he's Veela._

Hermione felt her heart stop before picking up again at a furious pace. Throwing Draco a cursory glance, he was working diligently on his potion, staring intently into its depths. Biting her lip, she reached out, picking up her quill and finding her ink pot quickly before putting quill to parchment.

_How did you figure it out?_

She watched as her words disappeared into the paper and waited with bated breathe for a reply.

Minutes later, words began to materialise once more.

_The bite marks._

Hermione shot Draco another glance, he still appeared to be focused on his work.

More words were appearing on the paper, _Why didn't you say anything Hermione?_

Her hand shook as she scratched out her response.

_I was scared Harry._

Her eyes were glued to the parchment as her words faded once more.

Almost immediately a reply came, _You don't have to be scared Hermione, you can fight this. I've been reading, you can break the bond if you really want to. You can come back to us, you just have to fight it._

Hermione felt her blood freeze in her veins as she read Harry's words. A cold dread creeping up her spine as she looked up, turning her head slowly, she saw Draco was watching her intently.

"What are you reading, little lion?"

Hermione felt like her heart was about to beat out her chest as she looked at Draco wide eyed.

"N-nothing."

He cocked his head, watching her with an indiscernible expression before returning to his cauldron. Hermione heaved a breathe of relief before looking back at the page.

Biting her lip, she dipped her quill into her ink pot shakily before writing a reply to Harry's casual dismissal of Draco's life. If he knew what Draco was, then he would definitely know the consequences of what he was suggesting. She could never attempt something so cruel, even if it _was_ Draco Malfoy.

Flickering her eyes to the man in question once more she watched closely as he worked. She'd grown quite fond of his icy personality if she was being entirely honest.

Draco had yet to over stepped since she had drawn the line on her limits. She'd read as much as she could on his biology, oftentimes forgetting that he was currently a raging ball of hormonal instincts as his controlled and detached demeanour gave absolutely nothing away.

She thought about his friends and family who would surely suffer if she was to even contemplate going through with what Harry was suggesting. His quirky and vibrant, matronly mother who liked her life to imitate the art she enjoyed. His colourful group of friends that all seemed to have various vivacious personalities in some regard or another. And Draco himself, cold and detached Draco who worried away his time sequestered in solitude. Working in silence and rarely interacting with others unless prodded.

She thought of the building affection she'd acquired for him she'd thus far ignored. She didn't know what to do, how much of her emotions were hers and how much was influenced from the bond? Realistically she knew he couldn't make her like him, not really. It only made the pit in her stomach feel bigger. Biting her lip, she wrote.

_I'm sorry, Harry. I can't do that._

It was only a few moments later when she saw new ink appearing, _Hermione, please. It's not real. He's using his Veela charms to make you want him. You have to fight it. You belong with us, not with some Veela you don't even know._

Hermione's eyes began to water as she read his message.  
  
She did know Draco though. Not as well as some, but she felt it was better than most. And that was only in a couple of weeks. She saw in him a fortitude and resilience she had never witnessed before, it drew her in, like a moth to a flame. She had quietly become obsessed with knowing more about him and she felt like he was completely aware of her every thought and feeling whenever they were together.

Slowly exhaling Hermione began to write.

_I could never be that cruel to anyone Harry. If you know what he is, then you know what would happen to him if I left. You would also know that it is real, at least for him. I won't ruin his life because he had the unfortunate luck of bonding to me. Please understand that. I told you I would continue to do everything I can to help the cause, and I am. Please don't ask me to come back again Harry, it's too painful to keep saying no. I will be back, I promise you. For now, I have to do what I can to help everyone, that means doing what I can for The Order from here.  
Goodbye, Harry._

Hermione closed her book on the parchment so she wouldn't have to look at it anymore. She used more force than intended, the loud clap making her jump slightly. She looked up at Draco, staring at her intently. Blushing, Hermione averted her gaze.

When she saw his heavy booted feet enter her line of vision, her head snapped up. Draco watched her closely, eyes roving over every inch of her face before settling on her eyes.

"It's getting late. We should get cleaned up for dinner." He said serenely.  
  
Gulping, Hermione took the hand he offered her and pulled herself down off of the table. They continued walking together to Draco's bedroom in silence, their footsteps echoing around loudly in the empty halls. Draco seemed perfectly content with the silence and Hermione felt herself drifting back into her thoughts. Harry's words had made her confront her growing feelings for Draco and she didn't know what to do about it. She didn't know how to express what she felt and it left her tongue and stomach tied in knots. When their hands brushed briefly, she felt her heart stutter as awareness shot up her spine. She didn't know if these feelings rolling around inside her were a result of her physical connection to Draco or if she was developing a true tender affection for the beguiling introvert. Whatever it was, it was becoming harder and harder for her to ignore.


	49. Chapter 49

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay guys!
> 
> WARNING, SCENES OF A SEXUAL NATURE ARE IN THIS CHAPTER.
> 
> give me your thoughts? What do you think? I'm actively taking on what people are saying so if you've got a bone to pick with someone let me know!
> 
> Xoxo

**DRACO**

All afternoon Draco had been acutely attuned to the violent swings in Hermione's mood. He had feigned interest in his brewing potion as he observed her discreetly. She had been scrawling words on a piece of parchment, it hadn't taken him long to figure out that she was communicating with someone. The spikes of anticipation after she had scratched something out and the roiling emotions that followed of guilt and confusion and longing had left him feeling strung out and intensely curious. He hadn't been privy to those kinds of emotions in what felt like years. They were almost foreign and unfamiliar.

It was the only thing that had stopped him from confronting her about it.The swirl of her emotions had been like a soothing balm. He had killed his own a long time ago. Months of physical and psychological torture would do that to a person. Memories of his fathers visits filtered in and out of his mind as their footsteps echoed about the silent halls on the way to his rooms.

His thoughts went to the last visit his father had paid him. It had been around nine days before Abbott had shown up in the cell next to his. His father had been experimenting with new curses. He had told Draco that perhaps if he was able to inflict enough pain and collectively manipulate enough memories that he would eventually get Draco to succumb to his will. Draco had been lying a bloody mess on the grimy floor of the dingy cell, delirious after hours of pain and the new phantom sensation of his skin being peeled back and ripped off. A curse his father had found deep in the Malfoy archives. Lucius had used it over and over, until he had been a crying, screaming mess in a puddle on the floor. Much like the Cruciatus, he'd remained completely in tact while his father wreaked havoc on his body and mind over and over.

Coming back to reality as they reached his room Draco blinked, reaching out to hold the door open for Hermione to walk through first. She seemed skittish, stepping lightly, as if afraid she would break the stone beneath her feet. She was biting her lip and wringing her hands as she walked further inside.

Draco observed her quietly, removing his black outer robe and throwing it over the chaise by the fireplace. He walked over to a close by table with a decanter, pouring himself a glass of firewhiskey.

Drinking it down whole, he closed his eyes against the burn before pouring out another, this time taking a small sip. He could feel Hermione's anxiety like a live wire in his chest, sparking his heart back into oscillation. His urges pushed him to comfort her, but he fought it down. Controlling his baser nature was a working effort, but after everything he'd endured in the past, he was able to conquer it. He felt his instincts like a pulsing living being within him, whispering to him whenever she was near. He knew if he gave into them he'd lose her. Hermione Granger was a paradigm of virtue in a world of sycophants and whores. More than ever, he had to play by her rules if he had any hope of keeping her.

His eyes snapped back to her prone figure by the bed when he felt the warm glow of her embarrassment swirling with the sharp tang of her terror.

Hermione flushed brightly when Draco's pale eyes zeroed in on her. He strolled closer, inhaling her honeyed scent appreciatively. Stopping to lean down and place his drink on the bedside table before turning to her. She was trembling lightly and worrying her lip with her teeth. He fixated on her face as she stepped closer to him, looking up at him through her lashes before slowly reaching up to snake her hands around his neck, running her fingers into the hairs at the base of his skull. She pulled herself up and slowly drew his head down to meet her lips. Draco felt his heart clench briefly and closed his eyes as their lips touched.

Peeling back his lids, he watched her as she continued kissing him softly, wet tears clinging to her lashes. Pulling back, he gripped her shoulders, tasting the whirlwind of apprehension and anxiety lapping around him.

He stepped forward, invading her space. Reaching up, he tucked a stray curl behind her ear before swooping down to punish her with a bruising kiss.

Hermione gasped as Draco pushed his tongue against hers in a forceful caress. She clutched at his upper arms, swaying slightly in her place. Reaching down, Draco slid his hands down around her hips slowly, dragging them back under her thighs and gripping tight as he hoisted her up, wrapping her legs around his waist and pressing them together tightly.

She pulled out of the kiss, panting. Trembling when Draco lowered his lips to her throat, sucking and licking at her skin before he stepping closer to the bed.

Hermione's body locked up.

Pulling back from her neck, he watched her closely as she ducked her head again, biting her lip and avoiding his gaze.

Draco raised his hand, wrapping his fingers gently around her chin, nudging her head up to meet his stare.

Something happened behind her eyes as he looked at her. She was terrified. Warring with himself as he watched her, he lowered her gently to the floor. Inhaling her scent deeply before stepping out of her reach, watching as she trembled before him.

Sighing, he reached back for his whiskey, taking a large gulp to calm his raging nerves. The rush of her anxiety combined with the burn of the alcohol was like a bucket of ice water as it rushed through her to him.

"Draco?" Hermione asked timidly.

"Hmmm?" He hummed in response, keeping his gaze averted.

"Why won't you touch me? You haven't touched me since I first came here."

He swung his head around to watch her closely, brow arched, "You asked me not to."

Hermione blushed, "I-I know that. It's just, I was expecting…"

"You were expecting me to be unable to control myself?"

She bit her lip, ducking her head bashfully. Draco became enraptured with the soft warm tendrils flickering through his chest. Her embarrassment and soft affection struck him deeply. He hadn't been anticipating it.

When she raised her eyes to his, she watched him quietly for several moments before taking a shaky breathe and reaching up with trembling fingers, she fumbled with the catch on her dress as she slowly pulled it open, pulling it down her arms and lowering it to the floor, slowly baring her body to his gaze. Taking a breathe, she slipped out of her shoes and lowered her underwear quickly, rising up and standing before him completely naked, avoiding his eyes.

Draco felt like his heart was in his throat as he swallowed, venom pooling in his mouth and nostrils flaring as he took in her supple body. His instincts were screaming for him to take her now and take her hard. He shook with the effort of keeping himself still.

She was so frightened it cooled his blood. He had to remember this was unfamiliar territory for her, that she was doing this is in the first place floored him.

Taking a step closer to her, he raised his hand to cradle her jaw as he pressed his lips to hers in a soft, reassuring caress. He walked her backwards to the bed, Nudging her gently until the backs of her thighs hit the mattress. Reaching down he hoisted her legs up around his hips before carrying her to the middle of the bed.

She was shaking harder now as she clung to his neck for dear life. Nails pricking his skin sharply, he pulled back he observing her, her eyes were wide and her skin was flushed a furious red from her cheeks down to her chest. He gave a gentle tug on the chord connecting them and watched as she gasped, panting and shaking.

Her emotions were swirling around him in a flurry of activity, making his head spin. Her guilt and fear were building higher as he trailed his lips down her neck lightly and he sighed. She didn't really want this. He didn't know why she was doing it, but it wasn't for the right reasons. He couldn't bring himself to continue, despite the fire in his blood, she wasn't fully present, and he wanted her undivided attention when he finally allowed himself to take her.

Sighing internally, he sat up over her, brushing her hair back from her face, watching her heave and shudder beneath him.

"What are you doing?" She asked breathlessly.

He watched her quietly, she may not be ready for sex but he could definitely entice her with what it would be like.

Extracting himself painfully, Draco rolled to his side, half hovering over her and trailing soft kisses down her neck. He began to purr lightly to help her relax as he ran his free hand down her abdomen slowly. When he reached the apex of her thighs he heard her breathe catch. He stilled his hand, releasing pheromones into the air around them in a subtle haze. Watching closely as her anxiety slowly rolled into a nervous anticipation.

"Draco?"

He nibbled her ear gently, feeling her shudder as he slid his hand lower through the curls at her core, running his fingers over the flesh in a barely there caress as she heaved with every shaky breathe.

Draco circled her clit with his fingertips, watching intently as her breathing picked up before slipping his hand lower and gently sliding two fingers inside her core. She arched slightly, panting as he slowly flooded her with more pheromones.

He pumped her softly, building her up before slowing his movements and pulling her back from the edge.

Hermione bit her lip whimpering, bringng one hand up pulling at her hair, the other reached down to clutch Draco's forearm tightly as he continued his slow seduction of her senses.

He'd been holding her on the edge with his fingers, manipulating her flesh skillfully when he reared back, looking at her face closely as he worked her gently. Hermione stared up at him wide eyed when he swooped down to bite her lip, worrying it between his teeth before leaning down to whisper in her ear.

" **Come**."

He watched on in fascination as Hermione suddenly arched off of the bed, gasping loudly while he pumped her through her climax.

He could feel the phantom ecstasy of her release echo through his chest and watched her intensely as he spoke again. " **Come**."

Hermione grunted, crying out, her nails digging into the flesh of his arm as she ground herself down into his hand while he maintained the rhythmic pace of his thrusting fingers.

Bending down, he nipped at her nipples, tugging lightly with his teeth before drawing back.

He looked into her eyes as he spoke once more, " **Come** ". The imperious ringing in his voice sent her screaming into euphoria, her drenched walls pulling at his rocking fingers, still in the throws of pleasure, Draco urged her once more.

" **Come** ".

Hermione's body locked up, gasping and spasimining as she looked up at him with wild, unseeing eyes.

" **Come**."

Her torso bowed off of the bed, mouth open wide in a silent scream, eyes rolling into the back of her head before slumping to the bed, unconscious.

Leaning back, Draco withdrew his fingers from between her thighs gingerly. Bringing his fingers up to his face and licking her honeyed juices from his fingers with his eyes closed in appreciation, groaning lowly.

Looking down at her now, his instincts urged him to bite her. To pound her hard until she was screaming his name.

Biting his tongue, Draco brought his hands around to bunch and clutch at his thighs. Digging his fingers in and focusing on the stinging pain of his claws and not his primal urges. He wasn't an animal.

His pale grey eyes swept over her nakedness once more and he felt himself twitch in his pants.

Rising slowly from the bed, he cast a wandless scougify on them both before walking over to the dresser, shedding his clothes and pulling on a pair of silky black boxers. He opened a little used draw by his own and rummaged around before pulling a pale lavender silk negligee edged in grey lace from its depths. Raising a brow he turned to look at the beauty sleeping in his bed.

She would be angry if she woke up naked again. Smirking, he stepped over to the bed, reaching out and running his thumb over a breasts peak, watching it tighten.

Biting his lip, he growled before manouvering her body to pull the nightgown over her head and down her torso. It wasn't exactly the modest boxers and shirt she usually wore but he figured he should be allowed this one small pleasure to indulge in. Smirking wide, he stepped around the bed, sliding in beside her and drawing the sheets up around them both before tugging her into the cradle of his arms. He closed his eyes in contentment, purring lightly as he drifted into unconsciousness, holding her close.


	50. Chapter 50

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hooray for early updates! It's Game of thrones tonight and the episode I've been waiting almost seven years to see is about to happen. I may just die of a heart attack before I see it. Anyhoo, I've got a few new chapters for you, I absolutely adore every one of the words people have been leaving for this story. You help me get creative. :)

**HARRY**

Harry hung his head in his hands, fingers gripping and tugging at his roots as he groaned. Slumping to the table and smacking his forehead with a dull thump.

Ginny rubbed his back soothingly from her perch on the desk by his shoulder. Ron lay on his bed looking unseeingly at the ceiling with a frown.

"It's okay Harry, Hermione definitely sounds like she knows what she's doing. She not writing whimsical about how much she loves this Veela. She's reassuring us that she's in her right mind and that she's actively working to help us. We need to trust her."

Ron snorted, "How are we supposed to trust her? She broke out in the middle of the night and broke into kingsleys room to make sure we couldn't follow her back to wherever the hell she is. Why would she do that?"

Ginny frowned, "You read what she wrote, she doesn't want to hurt him. Obviously he can't be that bad if she's going to such lengths to protect him."

"Why does he need protecting? What does he have to hide? Why couldn't he just come back here with her and explain what happened?" Ron said skeptically.

Ginny bit her lip looking thoughtful, "When Hermione and Hannah were here she said that they were staying with a group of like minded people that were in hiding. We assume anyone not fighting for Voldemort would seek us out, but that's not the case is it? Some people would want to get as far from the war as possible."

Ginny stiffened, sitting up straight, "Harry, what did kingsley say about that powder Hermione came in with?"

Harry lifted up from his position, taking off his glasses and rubbing his eyes tiredly before replying, "That it had unidentifiable properties that he'd never seen before, and when he tested it he found that it was able to connect to any active floo network."

Ginny raised her brows, " _Any_  active network? As in anywhere?"

Harry frowned, "I guess so, yeah."

Ginny gripped his arm tight while Ron looked on frowning, "Don't you see, Harry? Hermione could be just about anywhere in the world. She might not even be in Britain anymore."

Harry paled and Ron shot up straight, "If that's true Ginny, then why would the Veela be in the forbidden forest?"

Ginny eyes gleamed as she began piecing the puzzle together frantically, "Hermione was taken just two days after term began at Hogwarts. Padma told Cho a while back that her little cousin from Slytherin went missing shortly after school started. She and Pavarti had been planning on getting some people together during break to go and get him when they learned that he'd already disappeared, they found out groups of kids had been vanishing around the beginning of term ever since the final battle."

The boys looked at Ginny like she'd grown three heads when Ron spoke up, "Since when are you and Cho buddy buddy?" Ron asked stupidly.

Ginny scowled, "That's all you got from what I said? Jeez, don't you knuckle heads get it? This Veela is probably a part of the group that's been smuggling kids out of the school. what other reason would a grown wizard have for being in the forbidden forest? Which children to do you think would still be sent to Hogwarts with everything that's happening?"

Harry perked up, looking at Ginny intently.

"Slytherins." He murmurred.

"What?" Ron asked.

Harry turned to him excitedly, " _Slytherins_. Hermione is with _Slytherins_. That's why it was in the forest, don't you get it Ron? They're Slytherins hiding from Voldemort."

Ron frowned, "But why would they need to hide? It's not like Voldemorts going around and branding all the Slytherin kiddies with the dark mark."

Ginny flicked his ear, "They don't support him you dolt."

"But why wouldn't they seek _us_ out? We're fighting to defeat him."

Ginny sighed, "Would  _you_ want to fight your own family in a war?"

Ron went silent at this, rolling the thought around in his head. Harry's mind was buzzing, going a mile a second as he pieced all the information he had together, "We just have to figure out who was a Slytherin and a Veela at Hogwarts, that can't be too hard can it?"


	51. Chapter 51

**HERMIONE**

Hermione began to rouse from sleep, blinking blearily as she looked about her. Her head had been cushioned on Draco's chest, her arms and legs wrapped tightly around his frame as she hugged him in her sleep. He had one arm slung over hers across his chest, the other curled around her back.

Looking down, she noticed the slinky silk slip she was encased in and blushed, thoughts suddenly racing to events before she had passed out.

She didn't know what she had been thinking or where her courage had come from when she stripped down in front of Draco. Her thoughts and emotions had been a hurricane of turmoil and angst and she had wanted to forget. If only for a moment, how complicated her life had become. The guilt Harry had evoked within her had been overwhelming. Which in turn made her feel even guiltier for even considering what he had suggested. Draco had been nothing but kind and patient with her, if not a little withdrawn. She had learned from her interactions with him and those around them that he had been plagued by something terrible. Daphne had let slip to her that Draco had shown no signs of demonstrating before his miraculous return from the dead. It had puzzled her and she'd dug into her research until she had come up with a plausible answer. Draco wasn't a full Veela. The gene had been diluted by pureblood marriages, Daphne had also confessed to her that as far as she knew, no one in Draco's family had demonstrated in years. And so her books had led her on a wild chase for answers until she'd found one that had fit. Enough physical duress could trigger an early transformation in young Veela. Hannah had told her about Draco's torture and she had come to the conclusion that the recessive magic had been activated in his blood sometime during his imprisionment.

Biting her lip, Hermione Thought back to what had happened after she had bared her body to Draco. He had definitely seemed interested. She blushed, thinking about the way his eyes had raked her form like a lusty caress. She couldn't believe what had happened. She didn't think she would have ever been able to do what she had done, especially with Draco. But his easy and controlled demeanour had gotten under her skin. Harry's words had made her think about everything she had learned about Draco's genealogy and the guilt had dropped down on her like a heavy weight on her shoulders. He was supposed to be smothering her in attention and affection. Trying to seduce her senses until she acquiesced to his will, solidifying their bond and future, together.

Her eyes stung, he hadn't done any of that though. He'd kept his distance and let her keep her privacy. He hadn't restricted her movements, only cautioned them. He had been everything she had asked him to be and it made her heart ache. How could she ever contemplate ruining this mans life when he was doing everything in his power to nurture hers?

It had been a snap decision. She hadn't really thought about it until Draco had looked at her with those piercing pale eyes. They way he watched her made her feel protected and safe. The silent possession in his eyes made her shudder when she tride to hold it for too long.

Now, in the early morning light, Hermione bit her lip. She felt hot all over as she looked down at their tangled bodies. Her bare leg was slung high on Draco's hip, resting precariously next to the heavy bulge in his tented boxers. She felt her centre pressed into Draco's side and she flushed brightly, the pleasant tingling sensation reminding her of what exactly Draco had done to her the night before.

Checking to make sure he was still asleep, Hermione took the opportunity to examine his scars more closely. Thin white slices riddled his sides and upper torso. The occasional faded burn marks littered across his abdomen. If it wasn't for his pale complexion, his scars would stand out horrendously. She shuddered lightly as she traced a finger over a larger cut across his sternum.

Hermione felt the arm around her back tighten and snapped her head up to see Draco watching her with pale grey eyes.

She flushed, whispering, "Good morning."

Draco smirked slightly, "Good morning, ltitle lion."

She felt her heart beat quicken and her face turn redder as he watched her with dancing eyes. She cleared her throat quietly, "Last night. What you did…why didn't you?"

"Why didn't I fuck you instead?" He asked silkily.

She didn't think her face could get any redder as she fought the maintain eye contact, "For lack of better words." She muttered.

He smirked wider, "Granger, you didn't want me to sleep with you, you wanted me to make you feel better."

She cocked her head, "How would you know?"

Draco raised his arm behind his head, propping himself up whilst cradling her back, "I'm attuned to exactly how you feel at any given moment, Granger. You're guilt was coming off of you in waves. I couldn't take advantage of you when I knew it wasn't what you really needed from me."

Hermione slid her palm across his chest, splaying her fingers and dropping her chin lightly on top of it, trying to ignore their intimate positioning in favour of getting to know this man that always felt more and more like a stranger, despite feeling like she knew him at times.

"I want to know you, Draco."

He fingered a piece of her hair idly, "Don't you already?"

She huffed, "Not as well as I'd like to, if we're going to be continuing in this direction."

"What direction is that?"

She bit back a growl, "Intimacy."

Draco cocked a brow, "What would you like to know, Granger?"

Hermione exhaled slowly, running the hand lying across his waist up, tracing the thin lines covering his torso.

She whispered, "How did this happen?"

Draco sighed, thumping his head against the headboard as he stared into space, "when I was imprisioned I was tortured every now and then by the Death Eaters when they were drunk or bored. My father also paid me regular visits to encourage me to give him my mothers whereabouts. When I didn't give it to him, he got angry. He played around with different curses and used legilmency to twist my memories. He was hoping he could eventually twist my mind enough to get what he wanted. When I didn't break quickly he became enraged and began visiting more often, inflicting more pain for longer intervals until I would pass out, then he would go inside my head and play with my memories."

Hermione felt her eyes beginning to sting as she listened in shock, breathing through her nose, she whispered, "You got all of these from being tortured on a by regular basis for ten months by your _father?"_

He blinked, "Why don't you ever talk about it?" She asked quietly.

Draco sighed, "What's to talk about granger? Why should I make my mother and friends feel horrible about something they couldn't have prevented? It happened, its over, I survived."

He looked at her intently, tightening his grip, "Isn't that what we all want in the end? To survive?"

She looked up at him wide eyed, "Not if you don't get to live."

He watched her amused, "Who knew you were so poetic, Granger?"

She huffed, "It's the truth though isn't it? What is life without love and happiness? That's what we're fighting for. A brighter future for everyone."

His eyes darkened, "Granger, I understand that your noble ideals disallow you from seeing the shades of grey but you really must realise, not everyone is equal in this world. There will always be those who stand above the rest, or believe that they do, no matter the circumstance."

Hermione couldn't find the words to deny his statement before he went on, "I know I was one of those people, and to a degree I still am. Rest assured Granger, I hold you in the highest of respect."

She blushed lowering her eyes and tracing along the many lines littering his torso. "That's only because you've bonded to me though isn't it? You're compelled to think I'm amazing.."

He chuckled, rattling both their bodies lightly, "While that's true to an extent, I believe my respect for you has been long standing. You never backed down when I tormented you in school and you proved time and again that my father was wrong on so many levels. I was raised to believe muggles were dirty and stupid. You were probably the cleanest kept student in our grade, you're uniform was always pristine and perfect and your magic and skill far exceeded the bulk of our class. How did that fit in with everything I'd been brought up to believe?"

He licked his lips, Hermione watching, enraptured as he slowly peeled back layer after layer with his words, "I hated you for it. For proving that my father was a liar. That my life up to that point had been a farce. But you never backed down, you always stood your ground. It just made me respect you and hate you even more."

He sighed, "How could I hate you now?"

Hermione lowered her eyes, "I didn't think I'd ever be able to accept this. _You_."

There was silence for a moment when he murmured, "And now?"

She watched him closely, eyes roving over his laconic features before whispering quietly, "You're growing on me."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Love it? Hate it? LET ME KNOW! Xoxo


	52. Chapter 52

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! It's been a busy week, but here is my regular update as promised. Give me your thoughts. xo

**DRACO**

She'd been draped casually over his body chatting away aimlessly for a while now. He listened indulgently as the conversation turned from morbid to playful. She had rattled off random stories about her life growing up in the muggle world and some of her misadventures with Potter and Weasley throughout the years.

She had told him about storing Rita Skeeter in a jar after the Tri Wizard Tournament, of guiding Dolores Umbridge into the forbidden forest under the guise of exposing Dumbldore. He listened avidly through it all, answering diligently when she stopped for breathe to ask him inane questions. He didn't mind, he could see what she was doing. She was opening up. For the first time in a long while he felt the lick of aphrension up his spine.

Switching gears, he snickered internally, she was still actively ignoring the way they were wrapped together so closely and had became more and more relaxed as their conversation wore on and was now resting her chin idly on his chest, tracing aimlessly patterns across his skin. Her touch felt like a brand along his flesh, leaving a fiery trail over the skin she brushed with the tips of her fingers.

He had just finished explaining to her about the informal approach to the education of the children on The Plantation his friends had developed. Often rotating in shifts for classes. When in doubt they sent them to the gardens with his mother and Elenore, both more than capable of teaching the youngsters for a couple of hours when needed.

Hermione's chuckle shook his frame, he tightened his hold on her before biting back the purr tickling up his throat. Frowning to himself when it almost slipped out without his notice.

"Draco?"

His gaze swung around to her open and curious expression. He regarded her silently as she continued, "Do you really think your mother and Elenore Zabini are the best candidates to be teaching children?"

He smirked, "Mothers quite an accomplished witch, I assure you. Despite her scattered outward demeanour she is quite talented. Elenore keeps her in check whenever needed."

Her brows rose to her hairline, "Elenore? How could she possibly be a good influence on developing minds?" Hermione asked dubiously.

Draco chuckled briefly, "There is a lot more to Elenore Zabini than meets the eye. She hasn't survived eight husbands without knowing how to handle herself."

Hermione frowned, "I hate to be a gossip monger, but I have to ask if there's any truth the things that were said about her in school? Did she really kill several of her husbands?"

Draco regarded Hermione shrewdly, "She did. Although, the circumstances were vastly exaggerated from what people have been led to believe."

Hermione gave him a pointed look, silently encouraging him to continue, "Elenore has never been a demure woman. In the instances where her husbands reached unfortunate ends, it was because they… opted out."

She frowned, "Opted out?"

"They decided they didn't want Elenore to leave. She's a beautiful woman, even in her old age. Purebloods can also be a tad fanatical when It comes to unions."

"Just a tad?" She muttered.

Her smirked absently, "Elenore has never lived by someone else's standards and she prides herself on it. Purebloods are primarily, her entertainment. An entire social class, just a sandbox to play about in, when she gets sick of playing, she fully expects to be able to walk away and move on. She's had several husbands who disagreed with how she went about things, preferring to try alternate means of persuasion, often at the expense of her son."

He pinned her with pale grey eyes, "They never lived long after that. Elenore may be a lush, but she loves her baby boy more than anything in this world. He's the one man she's never turned her back on."

Hermione frowned, "But why would she go to such extreme lengths?"

Draco's eyes shined with a silent adirmation, "Like I said, she loves her baby. If any of them were fool enough to threaten Blaise, I don't blame her for doing away with them, even if he is a spoilt brat."

Hermione huffed, "But what about the law? Hasn't she ever been charged or accused? Surely someone noticed her steady trail of expired spouses."

Draco smiled, but it wasn't a true smile. It was a twisted ironic imitation of a smile, "Purebloods have always led private lives, Granger. They look out for their own, Elenore might be obnoxious on a good day, but she is still an ancestor of the most noble house of Zabini. They would never let her prosecution bare fruit."

Hermione shuddered, "I hope I never get on her bad side."

Draco looked amused, "Elenore seems to like you well enough. She's not as vicious as some would think. Quite the opposite."

"Not vicious? She's murdered multiple husbands."

"Elenore has been married eight times. Only three of those marriages ended in disaster. She is still friends with several of her exhusbands."

Hermione cocked a brow, "And what about your mother? Does she miss your father at all?"

Draco's grip on her tightened briefly, "My mother loved my father once, with all her heart, she loved him."

She watched as his eyes became unseeing, "Before I came along, Lucius was the centre of her universe. A man, larger than life that whispered to her of a world, a better one where they would be respected and feared amongst all. She never cared about that though, all she cared about was him, then eventually me when I came along." He pinned her with his eyes, "Mother has had a lot of experience in her family dealing with bloodtraitors, one of which was her own sister. She never gravitated towards any extreme ideals, in all honesty she didn't seem to care at all, only whenever my father insisted upon it. He could do no wrong."

His expression became distant again, "When they branded me the summer after fifth year, she changed. She wasn't taking a back seat on Lucius and The Dark Lords plans anymore, the one thing in her life that had remained relatively unscathed by the madness my father had led her into had been tainted. She became enraged, eventually Lucius locked her up so she wouldn't hurt herself or others."

"Why don't you call him your father?" Hermione asked quietly.

The intensity of his eyes made her shudder, "He's not my father, he's just a man, a lonely coward who chose a raving madman over the ones he supposedly claimed to love."

 He watched as thoughts flickered across her eyes. Draco's life was far worse than she had ever assumed. She considered once in school that perhapshis fathe beat him, but had quickly dismissed the idea, Draco had been a pampered little shit in school. There was no way all that attitude was being given the go around.

Pulling herself up to look him in the eyes, Hermione reached out, brushing his hair back from his forehead in an almost motherly caress, "I promise Draco. I won't hurt you."

His eyes roved over her face and his hands slid up around her arms before yanking her down to his level, worrying her lip between his teeth before slipping his tongue inside. As he kissed her he tasted her emotions, Hermione felt like she was drowning. Pushing his lips against her own in a bruising rhythm that left her dizzy. After everything that had happened, she was beginning to find it difficult to remember why this was a bad idea.


	53. Chapter 53

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING
> 
> SCENES OF A SEXUAL NATURE IN THIS CHAPTER
> 
> okay so this is the big first step for Hermione, personally I think it's sweet. I'd apologise for my dirty mind but I don't want to. ;) I'll try to post a few more chapters in the next couple of days :) 
> 
> Let me know what you're thinking!

**DRACO**

Hermione kisssed him feircly, pouring all of her tumultuous feelings into the slid of their tongues and the caress of their lips. Draco's head swam with the overwhelming feelings radiating from his witch.

The care and concern she expelled staggered him. As he continued sliding his arms up and down as she leaned further into his embrace he felt something tickling through his chest. Breaking away from her mouth to trail his lips lightly down her throat as she stretched her hands up to bring her arms around to clutch tightly to his shoulders.

The slight sting keeping him present and grounded as her body slowly slid up higher along his. When he felt a distinct tang in the air air he stiffened. Blood rushing south as he tasted the drop of desire that tinged her scent. He began to extract himself from the temptation.

Hermione clung onto him, wrapping herself around him tightly before drawing back to look him in the eyes.

She whispered, "Stay."

He smirked feintly at the use of his own words, watching closely as she bit her lip before she slid her body further up unsurely, over his torso, settling down and straddling his waist, the heat at the apex of her thighs had him gritting his teeth as his hands slid down to her hips almost involuntarily.

"I don't want you regretting this in the morning Granger." He murmured.

She watched him with shining, eyes, sliding her hands into his hair as she leant in and kissed him lightly. Pulling back to whisper in the softly lit room, "It is morning, and I think you already made that clear enough last night." Growling, he let his instincts bleed into his actions as he gripped her hips tightly. Pulling away from her mouth to trail his lips in nipping kisses down her throat.

Hermione panted, dropping her hands from his hair to rest on his chest, bracing herself.

She gasped, sliding one hand up to grip his hair tightly and pulled him back from her neck to look him in the eyes. "I don't want you to use your influence, just us, nothing else." She whispered.

The desperation in her eyes cooled him slightly as he sat up from his prone position, sliding her down his waist as he rose higher until she was pressed tightly to the hardness between his thighs.

She shuddered lightly as he rocked into her, bringing his arms up around her back and drawing her in, pressing them tightly together as he ravaged her mouth.

The heat shooting through his veins urged him on as his palms slid down across her back, settling on her silk clad behind before gripping tight and lifting her to a kneeling position. Hermione squeaked, clutching onto his shoulders weakly as he held her eyes, watching as she bit her lip when he slid his hands lower, hands slipping down to tug at his silky boxers, hissing lowly when his girth sprang forth.

Leaning forward, Draco clutched her back once more, holding her tight as he manouvered their bodies until he was sitting on his heels, her splayed legs pressed tightly to his hips.

Draco bit her lip, worrying it between his teeth as he slowly slid his right hand around to her front. Holding her captive as he slipped his fingers under the material hiding her from view and stroking her slit.

Hermione trembled, clutching at his neck as their breathes mingled in the air and Draco watched her with an insensity that rattled her senses.

Slowly he began to stroke her hot flesh, before settling on her clit and rubbing, watching as her breathe caught and she began to shake.

Holding her eyes, he slipped his fingers down until he reached her core. Pausing briefly before sliding a finger inside her gently.

Hermione whimpered, pressing her face to his neck as he began to ignite her flesh. Bringing his thumb down to press into her nub when he slipped a second finger inside, thrusting rythmhically until Hermione's whimpers became a constant stream in his ear.

Nipping her neck gently, he grasped her hips, lifting her lightly he as he searched her face, looking for any doubts as he slowly lowered her back down. Taking one hand off of her hip, he held himself in place as he lined them up, watching her closely as she dropped down around his length.

Hermione's cheeks were flushed a bright pink, her eyes shining and her heart hammering wildly against her chest. Draco grit his teeth at the sensational feeling of her walls wrapped tightly around his cock.

Tightening his grip on her hips briefly, he rose her up carefully, shutting his eyes when she slid up his length before letting her drop back down.

Hermione panted into his neck, slumping forward to rest her forehead on his shoulder as he began pushing and pulling her in a steady rhythm over his girth. Biting back a groan when she bucked lightly, he increased his rhythm, rolling his hips up to meet hers on her every downward thrust.

"Unnghh.." Hermione muffled her moan against his throat, clenching around him briefly, Draco bit back a grunt, sliding his right hand around to rub and tug at her clit.

Hermione stiffened, arching back, hands clutched around his neck as he controlled her movements. Watching her with hungry quicksilver eyes as he pushed her faster.

Hermione's eyes rolled into the back of her head, tilting her head back, she gasped breathily. Growling, Draco leant forward. Using his teeth to tug at the revealing neckline of her sleepwear. Bringing the hand caressing her up to help push the pale Lacey silk down, pushing her breasts up and out, bouncing lightly with her rocking hips.

Draco suddenly began purring loudly when he leant forward to capture a nipple in his teeth, listening to her cry out as she clenched around him briefly.

Draco pushed her faster and harder until she was a grinding, bouncing mess, gasping every time their flesh slapped and his length pierced her depths.

She was pulsing hotly, choking out a string of moans and whimpers and Draco felt a liquid heat pooling in his belly as he watched her riding him almost desperately. No longer guiding her movements, resting his hand idly on the curve of her hips.

Their dual pleasure swirled around him, pushing him further into a fiery infurno as his pleasure built to unbelievable hieghts. Mindlessly, he brought his hands down, pushing the soft material covering her from sight to look upon the sight of his glistening cock disappearing into her core, over and over.

Growling, Draco brought his hand around, teasing her clit, caressing her into a delirium until she was gasping and sobbing with her head thrown back. Her hair tickling his thighs as he bit and licked at her chest.

When she suddenly gave a garbled wail of his name his body locked up and she broke apart in his arms, snarling as she clenched around him frantically, dragging him into that eurphoric heated ecstasy. White wings exploding from his back as she ground onto him, pressing their foreheads together as they watched the other intently from within the white cocoon of his feathery embrace.


	54. Chapter 54

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello lovelies! Apologies for the long wait, life is a ten car pile up on the highway for me at the moment. I've got three new chapters for you, let me know your thoughts. I always love hearing from my readers! xo

**FLEUR**

"I don't see why you don't just explain it to them." Bill said in exasperation as he pulled the blanket covering their strawberry blonde daughter up around her shoulders. Leaning down to kiss her gently in her sleep.

"I am Veela, I grew up around Veela, I know more than anyone the 'ardships we've endured." Fleur intoned from her place, watching as her husband dotted on their daughter.

He sighed, "That's my point, why keep what you know secret when it could shed some light on the situation?"

Fleur clicked her tongue, "Veela spent years fighting for the right to carry a wand, let alone be considered 'uman. Texts still depict us as creatures of sin, why would I add more fuel to that fire? We would all be burned in the aftermath."

Bill huffed, frowning and Fleur stepped up to him cooing softly before wrapping her arms around her husbands neck, "I know you know I'm right. Nothing good would come from me opening my mouth. We 'ave to let 'Arry come to terms with 'er circumstances before we attempt to influence the outcome. I've done my part and made sure 'e is moving in the right direction. Despite 'ow stubborn 'e 'as been." She pouted.

Bill chuckled, pressing his face to her hair, "You can't make everyone agree with you love."

Fleur smiled, "No, but I can definitely sway the odds in my favour."

Bills frame shook them both as he chuckled silently, "You're a dangerous woman."

Fleur sniffed, "You would do best to remember that, 'usband."

Her chortled, pulling back and stroking her hair lovingly, looking into those twinkling icy blues, "How could I forget?"


	55. Chapter 55

**HANNAH**

"Do you think granger would be amenable to discussing muggle halucnogenics?" Theo asked idly as he sprayed his plants with a water bottle almost lovingly.

Hannah snorted from her perch from the window seat, watching him tend to his various plants with a reverant care.

"I doubt it. Hermione's not exactly the kind of girl to be interested in that kind of thing."

Theo cocked his head, "I don't see why not, it's all for research."

Before Hannah could reply, Daphne and Pansy strolled into the greenhouse.

"What are you losers up to?" Pansy asked casually as she hoisted herself up onto a bench. Daphne walked about curiously, reaching out to stroke one of the bright green leafy plants when Theo's hand came out of no where slapping her down with a chiding frown and spraying her in the face with his bottled water.

Daphne sputtered indignantly while Theo returned to watering and Hannah laughed, observing the blonde Slytherin scowl before swiping her hand out at Theo's head and watching him duck her attack without turning and continuing on with his work without pause.

Pansy cleared her throat, reclaiming her attention with a raised brow.

Hannah flushed, "Nothing important, Theo's watering his plants and I'm just hanging out." She said lamely.

Pansy leaned in, furrowing her brow as she appraised Hannah suspiciously, "Are you high?"

Hannah went bright red, "Of course not!"

Pansy leaned back slowly, smirking, "Don't get your wand in a knot. I just wanted to make sure you weren't abusing any privileges."

Hannah scowled, "Privilege?"

Pansy shrugged, "Do you think Theo shares his goodies with anyone else in the house?"

Hannah blushed and bit her lip, swinging around to watch Daphne and Theo as they chattered aimlessly, "He just doesn't want anyone getting hurt."

It was Pansy's turn to snort, "If you believe that your delusional. Do you not recall Narcissa's mishap with the mushrooms?"

Hannah threw Theo an irritated glance, "Of course I do, I'm still angry with him. But he insists that it was harmless and that he just wanted her to relax. Apparently her mother hen attitude was getting on his nerves."

Pansy scoffed, "Of course, trust Theo to ply someone with drugs when they annoy him." Her expression became thoughtful, "Maybe I should start bugging him more often, he might slip some dragons breath into my tea…"

Hannah grit her teeth. Pansy was a rough personality to be around.

"So what brings you to the greenhouse on a lovely day like today?" She chimed sweetly.

Pansy glanced up from her nails, "We were wondering if you two had seen Draco or Granger around. They didn't show up for dinner last night and they've been missing most of today. Amelia's been distraught that her study buddy has gone missing and Narcissa's been unusually tight lipped."

Hannah shrugged, "I haven't seen her since the day before yesterday, have you checked Draco's potions lab? Or his bedroom? They generally stop there to clean up between meals." She offered.

Pansy cocked her head, "Huh. Maybe we should. God knows what's happened by now."

Daphne strolled over at that point, "Did you find anything out?"

Pansy shook her head, "Abbott hasn't seen them either. What about Theo?"

"What about me?" Theo intoned casually from over Daphne's shoulder, making her jump.

Daphne scowled and Pansy explained, "Nobody's seen Draco or Granger since yesterday morning."

Theo scratched his head looking pensive, "Looks like I owe Adrian fifty galleons."

When the girls all gave him blank looks he clicked his tongue before continuing, "Well they're shagging aren't they?"

The girls split into various states of suprise, Hannah's eyes going wide as she covered her mouth and chocking lightly. Daphne looked bemused as she watched Theo incredulously and Pansy just looked thoughtful.

Hannah couldn't keep it in, "Did you _bet_ on whether or not they were going to have _sex?_ "

Theo looked at her exasperatedly, "Not _if_ , _when_."

Hannah's eyes widened in shock, gaping as she floundered for words.

 


	56. Chapter 56

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING - SCENES OF A SEXUAL NATURE ARE IN THIS CHAPTER.

**HERMIONE**

Draco slumped on top of her, panting hard. Their sweat slicked bodies tangled up together between black silk sheets. His arm was still hooked under her thigh, bracing her up and open, while his other was tangled in the curls of her hair, his face pressed tightly to her neck, licking and soothing the bite he'd just left there.

Hermione was gasping, staring unseeingly at the ceiling as she floated in the aftershocks of her release. Since she had taken the initiative to move their relationship into new waters, Draco had been relentless. Punishing her with pleasure until she screamed herself hoarse, passing out in exhaustion.

She had woken up recently to soft purrs and caressing hands when Draco punished her again.

She sighed when he pushed himself up. Dropping her leg to wrap around his thigh and cradling her head in his arms. Brushing her hair back he watched her with an indiscernible expression.

Hermione flushed, biting her lip before rising up to kiss him softly, shuddering when he began to purr, pulling back from her lips to slide his down her chest in soft nips.

When he began to slide lower, slipping beneath the sheet Hermione sucked in a breathe, clutching at his hair and tugging, " _Draco, no…_ "

Before she could continue, a loud crack rung out through the room. Hermione jumped looking around wildly for the cause of the noise before coming face to face with Whispy.

Blushing furiously, Hermione stammered, pulling at the sheets to cover her exposed body, "Whispy, what are you doing here?"

At her words, the man resting between her legs under the black sheet moved lower. Snickering slightly against her flesh as she tugged at his hair, attempting to pull him away from her core as the Whispy looked on wide eyed and oblivious.

"Missus Narcissa is sending Whispy to feed the young master and miss. She is telling Whispy to bring them food." The small Elf squeaked. She felt herself flush red when Draco suddenly placed a gentle kiss on the pulsing nub between her thighs.

Biting her lip, Hermione said shakily, "Thank you Whispy. Just leave it on the table, if you please."

Hermione choked down a whimper as Draco began licking and sucking at her core steadily, slipping his hands up between her thighs to push her legs open wider in their already splayed position.

Hermione's eyes rolled into the back of her head as she gave another feeble tug at his hair, "If miss is needing anything else, she is only needing to call." The Elf said in a squeaky voice, bowing low before cracking loudly from the room.

Hermione slumped into the pillows, moaning low as she arched and pushed the sheet down around her waist while Draco licked at her. When he brought one of his hands down, slipping two fingers inside her clenching walls to thrust gently she buckled, giving a choked cry.

Hermione felt like she was drowning, gasping as her head broke the waters of a rushing rapid, throwing her about, gasping for breathe until with a drawn out cry her body locked up and the fingers tugging at Draco's hair now clutched tightly, holding him in place as he licked her through her release.

Panting hard, Hermione collapsed bonelessly against the bed. Trembling as Draco kissed his way back up her body before catching her lips with his teeth and pulling her into a devouring kiss.

Hermione's head swam deliriously as he kissed her, pulling back to watch her with shining quicksilver eyes, something that hadn't gone away since she had first initiated contact. His eyes glowed with an iridescent sheen that drew her in, a preternatural beacon of his differences.

"I should probably feed you, we didn't make it to dinner last night and it's well after lunch." Draco said in a gravelly voice.

Hermione's stomach grumbled at his words, making itself known.

Draco snickered, leaning down to kiss her forehead before rising from the bed, slipping out completely naked and uncaring, he strolled across to the platter of fruits and pastries left out by Whispy.

Hermione flushed, thinking about what he'd done to her while the elf had been in the room when he sat down next to her ankles, placing the tray of assorted foods on the bed between them.

Hermione studiously avoided looking at Draco, before reaching out for a green apple. Biting into it hard, crunching and chewing the sweet fruit gratefully.

Draco retrieved his own apple, "How are you feeling, Granger?"

Hermione blushed brightly, tucking the sheets tightly around her chest and under her arms, before clearing her throat, "I'm fine thank you." She said shakily.

He continued watching her as he took a large bite from his own apple before speaking, "Just fine?"

Hermione reddened further, taking a dainty bite of her apple, chewing and swallowing before replying, "Maybe I'm a little better than fine."

For the first time since she had arrived at The Plantation she saw Draco grin. She was completely disarmed as she gazed at him in wonder.

 _He's beautiful_ , she thought, eyes roving over his masculine features.

His pale eyes shining out at her, beckoning her, his wide curved mouth and pink lips cushioning a heavy angular jaw riddled in stubble slightly darker than the hair atop his head. She was completely enraptured by this creature when she heard him speaking with the voice of an angel.

"You're making me blush, Granger." He drawled.

Hermione shook her head slightly, processing his words as the fog cleared from her brain.

Glancing up at Draco now, she was unsurprised to see him watching her with mirthful eyes, knowing exactly what had happened.

"That was unexpected." She said dazedly, frowning as she bit into her apple.

Draco smirked, "What was?"

She flung her head around, narrowing her eyes, "What did you do?"

Draco shrugged, leaning back on his elbows, exposing himself uncaringly. Hermione studiously kept her eyes on his face, watching closely for any tells of his deception.

"Tell me." She demanded.

He blinked, looking up at her with scrutinising eyes, "I'm built to lore you in Granger, I'm equipped with an arsenal of abilities to ensure a long and lasting bond. My influence comes directly from my ability to charm. Without any effort, the right movements or expressions can influence your perception of me and what I'm saying. Most people are compelled easily, others like yourself, are able to distinguish the difference from what's real and what's influenced."

Hermione rolled his words over in her mind, examining them closely before replying, "You've never smiled around me before." She muttered.

Draco smirked indulgently, "You are sharp, aren't you."

She blinked, looking up at him, "Doesn't that bother you?"

"Does what bother me?"

She searched his face, "That you can't completely be yourself around anyone, that you can't express yourself the way you want to…" Sh trailed off, unsure where she should go.

Draco's smirked turned into the faded echo of a smirk, "Rest assured, I am not inhibited in any sense. Though it does give me some comfort that you are able to distinguish between realities. I wouldn't want you to think I was ever manipulating you."

Hermione bit her lip, "Despite everything that's happened, I feel like you're probably one of the least manipulative people in my life right now. And I don't know how to feel about that." She finished sadly.

Draco frowned, "I've laid bare my intentions Granger, you know the stakes, I've done my best to make this as painless for you as possible."

Hermione frowned, "I know, and I've never felt so cared for, but I've also never felt so exposed."

She looked him in the eyes, "You know all my secrets Draco. What I'm feeling at any given moment. There's no way for me to hide from you, yet you haven't pushed, not once. You know I've been talking to people on the outside, I know you do. You can tell when I'm hiding things from you. Why don't you ever…interfere?"

"I've made my peace with my lot Granger. If there is any divine justice in the world, it's going to have its way with me, all I can do is accept the things I cannot change. That includes you. You're one of a kind little lion, I have to accept you the way you are or suffer the consequences."

Hermione frowned, "So I'm just a burden to you?"

He laughed unexpectedly, "You don't get it, do you little lion?" When she continued frowning he smirked, reaching out a chucking her chin softly to look him in the eyes, "You're perfect."

Hermione flushed under his stare as he held her captive with his metallic eyes, the open honesty shook her deeply and she found herself leaning into his touch unconsciously.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Love it? Hate It? Review! xo


	57. Chapter 57

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Long time no see! Sorry for the long break. I've had a hectic time recently, two weddings and a funeral. Isn't that a movie? Anyways, I've been super busy, turns out quitting an office job in favour of a different line of work isn't the smartest idea if you haven't had much experience elsewhere. Especially considering my only other experience is as a bartender. I could tell you some horror stories...I'm getting off track again. Anyways I've promised I'll finish this story and I always try to keep my word. I am MILES ahead in chapters so don't worry! My only issue is that I don't spell check as I write and sometimes I can get a bit carried away, so I spend a long time editing my own work before I post it. :) also did any of you SEE the thrones finale? If I have to wait until 2019 for the next season I will riot. I will. :/
> 
> Anyhoo, I've got several new chapters for you, I'll be editing them as I go and hopefully I'll have enough time to post a bit more regularly :) enjoy! xoxo

**HANNAH**

"You idiots are going to get yourselves killed." Hannah muttered from her perch on the window seat of the greenhouse.

Blaise had sought them out, looking for Theo. When he arrived he rubbed his hands together grinning.

"Do you have them?" Blaise asked conspiratorily.

"Have what?" Daphne asked suspiciously, Blaise turned to her grinning winningly.

"Nothing dearest, Theo was just supposed to give me something to help prove a hypothesis of mine."

Daphne raised a brow, "What? How many shots of firewhiskey you can handle before you fall down?"

Blaise frowned, "No, I already know it's eleven, the boys have a bet going. I need to put a theory to test to verify our standings."

"What theory?" Daphne asked.

Pansy tilted her head back lazily from her prone position lying across one of the work benches, "He's going to spy on Draco and Granger to see if they're shagging yet."

Hannah and Daphne looked at Blaise aghast while Blaise seemed to freeze.

Theo looked at pansy annoyed, "How did you know?"

Pansy sighed, "Blaise isn't as discreet as he thinks he is. I overheard him telling Adrian he was going to stick a extendable ear under Draco's door."

Blaise flushed bright red as all eyes turned to him, "What? There's almost nine hundred galleons in this pot."

The girls eyes widened, "What?" Daphne exclaimed.

Blaise shrugged, "Aunt Cissa and Mother found out. They wanted in. Aunt Cissa took by the end of the month and Mother says they're already at it. I've got Tuesday, Adrian's got the next closest marker."

The girls all blinked, "So can we come with?" Pansy asked, sliding off of the desk.

Hannah blanched, "Pansy!"

The witch shrugged, "What? I'm curious, I didn't realise how much of a commodity this had become."

Theo sighed while Blaise grinned, "Follow me, ladies."

Blaise bound out of the greenhouse like an eager puppy, the occupants trailing after him in various states of frustration or amusement.

Hannah trailed towards the back of the group, preferring to observe the chaos unfolding instead of partaking. Biting her lip when Theo drew two fleshy ropes connected to some very lifelike ears from his pocket.

When they came to the hallway of Draco's bedroom there was complete silence amongst the group, "Maybe we should just go back, it doesn't look like anyone's here." Hannah said nervously.

Theo shot her a smirk and Blaise huffed, "Of course there's no noise, they would've cast a silencing charm."

Creeping closer Blaise pulled out his own wand, casting a quick silencing charm on the hallway, lest they be discovered.

Taking the ear Theo handed to him, Blaise let it drop to floor, watching it wriggle under the door before sticking the other end in his own ear.

Standing with his arms crossed, Blaise frowned, tapping his foot impatiently. After a few minutes Blaise's jovial demeanour had disminished, now he appeared only to be sulking, pouting heavily with a slouched back.

It was Daphne who stepped forward and took pity, "Come on, you can't always get your way."

Blaise continued to sulk as they trekked back up the hallway the way they'd come, Daphne rubbing his back and speaking to him in soothing whispers. Hannah watched on dubiously while Theo sniggered at her side, it was Pansy who broke the quiet, "And I thought I was the only Pansy in this place."

Theo sniggered while Hannah tried to hide her smile.

 


	58. Chapter 58

**HERMIONE**

"As soon as I've finished brewing it, all I have to do is let the crystals soak in the potion under direct moonlight for three nights. By that point, they should be able to hold enough magnetic force to contain the spells required." Hermione explained whilst stirring diligently and Draco watched curiously over her shoulder, hands resting idly on her hips.

"It seems like an awfully simple solution." He murmured in her ear.

Hermione shuddered, "When in doubt, go with the simplest answer. Could you pass me the mandrake root please?"

Draco stepped off to the side, keeping contact with his hand on her waist as he reached for the bowl she had put the cut up roots in. Passing it over her shoulder, Hermione murmured her thanks, dropping the sliced blackened roots into the cauldron carefully, stirring all the while.

Draco returned to his previous position as he observed in silence. Hermione had convinced him that she needed to come up for air after being sequestered away for so long. He had relented easily enough.

He seemed to be anticipating her every movement and never got in her way, always hovering close by as she went about her work. She didn't know why he wasn't preoccupying himself with his own work whilst here but she flushed lightly under the intensity of his eyes.

Sighing, Hermione wiped her hands on her skirts, "That should be fine to sit for the next half hour. Then I'll have to add the crushed bowtruckle leaves."

Draco hummed, snaking his arms further around her waist, wrapping her up tightly and lowering his lips to the column of her throat to nip and suck lightly as he started to purr.

Hermione slumped against his frame bonelessly, bringing her hands up to rest over his own, now rubbing circles into her hips.

"Mmmm, not now Draco." Hermione groaned as his hands slid lower.

He slid his nose up to ear, whispering huskily, "Come on Granger, play with me." He bit the shell of her ear gently, smirking when she shuddered.

Almost reluctantly, Hermione pulled herself from his embrace, turning, arms crossed, "Won't you speak to me?"

Draco frowned infinitesimally before reaching out for a stool and sitting in front of Hermione at attention. "What's on your mind, Granger?"

Hermione bit her lip, rubbing her hands up and down her upper arms as she worried over how to say what she had been waiting to say.

"When my potion is ready and we've tested it. If it works, I'll have to go to The Order with my finished plans."

She watched him closely for his reaction and was unsurprised when his only reaction was to lean back against the desk and cross his hands across his torso, "And?"

" _And_ , before we begin these plans I have a favour to ask." She eyed him for any signs of a reaction and went on when she found none, "I know you heard what Harry said at The battle of Hogwarts to Voldemort in the great hall, about being the master of the Elder wand."

He was so nonplussed he was almost a statue, "In the event of a battle. Neither Harry nor Voldemort would be the true master of The Elder wand. You are the true master of the wand. If any witch or wizard hoped to control that wand they would have to disarm or kill you." she took a deep breath, "I've made the decision to ask, beg might be appropriate, that you duel Harry before the final battle or before anyone figures out for themselves that it still answers to you. Harry needs to face Voldemort, it's his destiny whether he likes it or not, self-fulfilling prophecy or not. It's up to him to be our leader, he needs to lead and he needs to win, I'm not asking for Harry, I'm asking for me. What kind of world would we live in Draco, if Voldemort wins? We could never hope to be safe, I'm not asking you to join the fight, I'm only asking that you give us an advantage to sway the odds. I've given you my trust, now please give me yours."

Hermione was almost panting by the end of her speech, unknowing until she finished and looked Draco in the eyes that he was not as quick to anger as she might have thought, he looked ponderously bored really, her heart gave a jolt of hope, she was becoming familiar with his indifference.

He shot her an amused glance before returning to his previous expression, musing aloud, "If I were to do this for you, I would be risking the safety of our entire community to give Potter an advantage in a war we've removed ourselves from. What guarantees would I have that the people I am charged with protecting would remain safe?"

Hermione drew herself up, "You would have my word Draco. You know I would never put innocent people in harms way. All I ask is that I be allowed to arrange a meeting with Harry and you in secret so that you might grant him this power."

Draco looked almost amused, "Power? If what Lucius's taunts told me of my dearly departed godfather, it's that he was murdered for that very power. If the Dark Lord finds out that I still remain the master of the wand, he'll hunt me down. Win or lose." Draco shot her a look so fast she jumped slightly, "You realise by introducing me as an element to this situation, it will most definitely help lead Potter to some very obvious conclusions."

Hermione bit her lip, "I had realised that." She shot him a look so filled with agony he reached out unconsciously with his hand before gathering himself and drawing back, "But like I said, I'm not asking for Harry. I'm asking for every person who has become a victim of this war, please Draco."

She waited with bated breath as he stood and stepped closer to her, caging her to the desk slightly with his stance, "I won't do it for them granger." Her heart sank slightly before he reached out, chucking her chin to look him in the eyes, "but I'll do it for you."

Hermione bit her lip, but was unable to hide her smile as he watched her.

Leaning down he whispered, "You should probably add those leaves now."

Just as his gravelly voice hit her ears, the timer for her cauldron blared.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> what are we thinking?


	59. Chapter 59

**NARCISSA**

Narcissa sipped daintily from her cup as she watched Elenore teaching the young ones how to perform glamor charms. No different from simple transfiguration spells, Elenore used creative means to get the children to take a positive approach to their learning.

Narcissa sighed contently, breathing in the fragrence of her beloved flowers as she watched her little ducklings titter about excitedly. Even the boys seemed excited to be learning how to turn flowers into tea cups, or their hair yellow.

When she heard a crack off to her left she turned, seeing Whispy wringing her hands in her pillowcase as she looked up at the Blonde Mistress bashfully.

"What have you got to tell me today Whispy?" Narcissa asked in a hushed and excited tone.

The elf bowed before replying, "Nothing new today's Mistress."

Narcissa frowned, "No? What about when you brought them food? What happened?"

Whispy widened her lilac eyes, "Nothing Mistress, Missus Hermione was sleeping, but I thinks I woke her when I came in." She finished.

Narcissa huffed impatiently, "Well, what about Draco?"

The elf shook her head making her ears flap about, "Master Draco was sleeping all the way under the blankets, he's was really wanting rest I thinks."

Narcissa frowned, what kind of Veela was that son of hers anyway?

It wasn't until Whispy had cracked out of existence that Elenore decided to approach, drink in hand, after instructing the children to practise their spells amongst themselves And falling gracefully into the chaise across from Narcissa amongst some hanging lillies.

"And?"

Narcissa shot her an irritated look, "I'm beginning to wonder if he really is Veela after all."

Elenore snorted, "Draco's playing the long game Cissa, haven't you seen the way she looks at him?"

Narcissa frowned, "He's just so distant now, I never know what he's thinking. I worry that it's all too much for him."

Elenore placed her glass down on the table, reaching out to take Narcissa's small hand in hers. "He's going to be fine Cissa. Draco knows what he's doing, after everything that's happened he's come out stronger for it."

Narcissa bit her lip, "I hope you're right Nora, I really do."

Elenore clicked her tongue leaning back to retake her wine glass, "When am I not?"


	60. Chapter 60

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> in the last few hours since I last posted, I noticed I've had 100 hits! Wowza! But not one review :( come on guys, this is a give and take, I give you my words and you take chips at my soul with your critiques. xo

  
**HARRY**

Harry groaned, they'd been combing these yearbooks for hours. It had taken them a couple of days, but they'd been able to get a copy of every Hogwarts year book from the passed ten years from the many inhabitants of Grimmauld Place. Thus far they had narrowed down the list of candidates to thirty two. Twelve, if they discounted anything passed five years, but Harry didn't want to take any chances. He worried that they hadn't checked back far enough, but Fleur had assured them that Veela tended to imprint within reasonable age groups, and so they had reduced their age bracket.

"I think we need to take a break Harry, the list isn't going anywhere." Ginny said from his side before standing from the couch and raising her arms high in a stretch. Harry was momentarily distracted by the small sliver of skin that peeked out when he heard the clearing of a throat.

"Hmmm?" He asked distractedly as he continued watching his girlfriend stretch.

"Hey! Eyes off my sister!" Ron growled, leaning across the table and waving his hand in Harry's face.

Harry blushed, before he could say anything it was Luna who spoke first, "They're both young, healthy adults Ron. It's perfectly natural."

Everyone went quiet at that, blushing in various shades as Luna continued on with her reading, oblivious to the tension, it was Ginny who broke the silence.

"Harry, isn't that Hermione's parchment?"

Harry frowned at his girlfriend before looking down to where she was pointing, watching as words were being scrawled across the paper.

_Harry,_

_I know it's been a while and I apologise. I needed to wrap my mind around things here before I could address things there. I've come up with a solution. First I need to run a field test to make sure it works, but before I do that, I have something more pressing that needs to be addressed._

_Harry, there's no easy way for me to say this, so I'm going to ask you to trust me. In three days at midnight there will be someone in the forest, in the place I was taken, waiting for you. This person is going to give you something to help win this war. I need you to trust me, Harry. He will be there to help. Come alone or he will not show himself, and he will not come again. Please, for my sake, listen to what he has to say._

_I miss you, and I will be with you again soon._

_Love, Hermione._

  
Everyone at the table read the words over in silence until Ginny spoke up, "Maybe she convinced them to form an alliance with us."

Harry shook his head frowning, "If this were about an alliance it wouldn't be a one time deal, and she wouldn't have asked for it to just be me. Hermione would want to have as many diplomats involved as possible if that were the case. This is something else."

"Perhaps she just wants to introduce you to her mate." Luna offered.

Ron shot Luna an irritated glance, "That poncy Veela wouldn't dare come near Harry. He'd be too scared to show his face."

Harry frowned thoughtfully, watching Luna and Ron, weighing the options. Sighing, he realised Hermione hadn't really given him much of a choice, he would just have to wait and find out. His mind was made, he would be going to the forbidden forest in three days.


	61. Chapter 61

**DRACO**

He'd done some questionable things in his life, he wouldn't deny it. But this was just ludicrous. Granger's trust in her friends was iron clad. She hadn't let the subject drop until he'd made solid plans to follow through with his word. She still didn't have complete trust in him and while he understood, it grated him slightly. Not that he would ever let it show, he was wearing her down slowly. Her defences were melting and she was powerless against his intrusion. He'd stolen into her life and upended everything familiar. He wasn't worried, slowly but surely life at The Plantation was becoming the familiar, despite her loyalty to her friends. She was developing loyalties to the people here as well. She'd become quite attached to the children most of all and though she may deny it, he knew she was becoming more and more attached to his mother and friends as well. Hermione and his mothers relationship was an interesting thing to observe. They were both so careful around the other, but at the same time completely blunt and to the point.

She had begun to navigate his circle of friends with ease. She had confessed just the night before that it was easier for her to relate to them when she was able to recognise traits in their personalities that reminded her of her friends.

Whatever she needed to cope with the changes, he wouldn't push, she was making the steps all on her own, whether she realised it or not.

Draco may have agreed to her request for a secret meeting with Potter, but he had already formulated his plans. He was most definitely surprised when she told him the full story of The Elder wand and was loathe to acknowledge his part in it. There might have been a time when the concept may have been alluring, but those days were gone. If it was indeed true, and Draco had every reason to believe it was, he would've pawned it off on a random stranger. If it weren't for the severity of the situation he might have refused her, no matter how much she pleaded. As it was, she was becoming quite adept at knowing what to say to to sway him to her side.

Today was the day, he was meeting Potter at midnight, tonight in The Forbidden Forest. His mother had screeched his ears off when he'd told her. Granger had made it a point to avoid the gardens for the day after he'd regaled her with the story, by the end his mother had been hurling full cups of tea in his direction, shouting obscenities, all the while Elenore had sat back cackling gleefully.

Sighing, he finally opened his eyes. Staring blankly at the canopy in the darkness of the early morning light. Looking down, he noticed his witch was pressed tightly to his side, wrapped around him for warmth in her sleep. Watching her closely for several moments, he slowly extracated himself from her hold, placing his pillow in her embrace in his stead. Straightening, he picked up his wand from the night stand, casting a light warming charm on the thick blanket by the end of the bed and levitating it quietly to cover the sleeping witch.

He watched her a few moments more, confident she would not wake before slipping into the bathroom. Closing the door soundlessly, he turned and cast a silencing charm before lighting the room.

Placing his wand on the vanity, he began pulling off his sleep pants, something that Granger insisted upon, regardless of their new found intimacy. Stepping casually to the shower, he turned the knobs to start the jets that coated the glassed off partition. Hot, heavy steamy water began to converge on the enclosure as he slipped inside, sighing gratefully. Granger had adamantly refused to use the shower, unconvinced that he wouldn't watch her while she bathed. He would.

He looked forward to the day she no longer cared if he watched her. Imagining her slicked body amidst the steaming water had his cock twitching. Clenching his fists in frustration, he caved quickly, bringing his hands around to stroke his stiffening length.

Sighing, Draco began pumping himself in a steady rhythm, letting his head roll back on his neck as his mind conjured up images of the witch to blame, bathing her naked body within the steam. His hand sped up as his thoughts quickly wandered from soliatary caresses to a slippery tryst. Gritting his teeth when his imaginary Granger suddenly slid to her knees. He slowed his hand at this unexpected turn of events, anxiously anticipating where this fantasy would lead him, he wasn't disappointed. Granger reached out with her small delicate hands, reaching out to stroke his dick before slowly bending forward to lick his tip.

Draco clenched his jaw and breathed through his nose as she lowered her head and began a steady rhythm with her lips and tongue. The hot cavern of her mouth made him want to groan, he brought his hand up and bit into his knuckles to trap the sound as she slid lower, taking him deeper and faster until with a soundless grunt, he came.

Peeling back his eyelids, Draco became aware of his surroundings once more and gave a sigh of annoyance. His libido was driving him crazy and he suspected Granger as well. He had quizzed Amelia on her recent findings as he knew she would still be reading and he was at a loss. His instinctual nature was ruling him and it was screaming. At all hours of the day he had to grip his urges tightly, only allowing them to bleed into his actions once he and Granger were in the privacy of his rooms. He knew nothing Amelia read would bare any fruit as he knew more about Veela than she ever could. Still, he held a small hope she might return to him with an answer. If not, at least a direction which could lead to some semblance of peace for his fraying autonomy.

Thoughtlessly he stepped out of the shower before stepping over to the vanity and examining his appearance in the mirror. Sometimes he truly didn't recognise himself, in those moments, he lost himself and his memories of who he was and who he had become. The scars that littered his body served as unique reminders of everything he had endured. A particularly itchy memory for each.

Observing his reflection, he noticed his skin seemed to have darkened in tone some more, leaning forward to examine his face more closely, he looked for the boy he once was, unable to find any traces of him. The set of his angular jaw had widened and was covered in a light scruff he was loathe to maintain. His hair was cut short around the sides, the lengthy strands on top lay pliant against his head, pushed back against the humidity of the island. His height and the broadness of his shoulders still surprised him sometimes. He examined the hard lines of his body closely, the hard cuts of muscle littered with white slices didn't bother him. Nothing truly did.

Straightening, he dried himself, looking in the mirror a last time and turning his torso to examine the arched scars behind his shoulder blades. He had stopped demonstrating for the most part. Rolling his shoulder back experimentally, he watched closely as the muscles bunched and shifted to accommodate his new, hidden appendages. They were almost familiar now, he'd adapted quickly. Aside from a few particularly passionate encounters with Granger, they had remained unseen. She didn't seem to mind though, if he was being honest with himself he knew she actually liked it. He wasn't sure how he felt about that.

Running a frustrated hand through his hair, he walked back into the bedroom silently. It was softly lit by the dawns light as he made his way to his bureau, pulling on a cotton shirt and a hooded green cable knit sweater with some heavy pants and laced up boots. Tossing a cursory glance over his shoulder he found himself staring at the witch in his bed longer than he intended, shaking his head and walking to the bedroom door with a purpose and slipping out silently before heading in the direction of the quiditch pitch. It was much too early for anyone else to be awake, and if he had any hopes of making it through this day with a cool head, he'd need to let off some steam.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know about any of you but I imagine my Draco looks a lot like Charlie Hunnam in King Arthur. Just incase you wanted a life model to run with ;) xo


	62. Chapter 62

**HERMIONE**

When she woke up Draco had been gone for a while. Sighing Hermione pulled herself from the bed, noticing that Draco had draped a heavy blanket over her in his stead while she slept.

Smiling to herself, she bathed and dressed quickly before heading down the stairs. When she entered the breakfast hall Draco was not to be seen. Biting her lip, she scanned the crowd until she came upon a familiar face.

Weaving between the laughing and running children she came to a stop at a table in the back before taking a seat across from a golden haired teen.

Amelia looked up from her porridge with tired eyes, "Sleep well?" She chimed in a sickly sweet tone.

Hermione made a point of examining her face closely before answering, "Better than you apparently."

Amelia shrugged, "It's nothing, just some late night study. I have trouble sleeping sometimes and reading helps."

Hermione frowned, "I know the feeling."

Amelia arched a brow, spooning porridge into her mouth before answering, "I suppose you would."

Hermione looked thoughtful, "What are you studying? Maybe I can help?"

Amelia let forth a sly grin, not trying very hard to hold it back, "I'm sure I can manage fine on my own."

"Are you sure? I'm happy to be of any assistance that I can, I've studied it all before after all."

Amelia was outright grinning now, "Really, you wouldn't be interested."

Hermione examined Amelia closely, she had begun eating her porridge once more but Hermione wasn't fooled as she still held the hint of a smile. Therefore she wasn't surprised when the girl pushed the book her arm was resting on forward slightly and began tapping the cover absently.

"What's that you're reading?" Hermione asked politely.

Amelia bit her lip, "Nothing important, I told you not to worry."

Hermione shot her a frustrated look before wandlessly summoning the book to her hands, Amelia made to snatch it back but grabbed only air.

Hermione read the cover, _Veela social habits_ , she looked at Amelia curiously, "You're still worried about him?"

Amelia spooned some more porridge into her mouth delicately, "He asked me to read it."

Hermione raised a brow, "Did he?"

"He did."

Hermione frowned, "Why?"

Amelia smirked, "Maybe you should ask him."

"I'm asking you."

Amelia leant her elbow on the table, resting her chin in her palm, "He's been having some trouble."

"With what?"

Amelia sighed, "The mating fever."

Before she could think Hermione asked, "What about it?"

Amelia's cerulean eyes were dancing, "It's not subsiding."

Amelia looked amused as she watched the wheels turning in Hermione's head finally click. Blushing furiously she was unable to meet the girls eyes, "Oh. Well perhaps that's something I should discuss with Draco."

Hermione could hear the laughter in Amelia's voice when she replied, "Maybe you should. He's down at the quiditch pitch. I saw him out there when I went to the beach this morning."

Hermione muttered a hurried thank you before flying from her chair. Unable to see the blonde girl smirking into her porridge as she fled the room.


	63. Chapter 63

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, a couple new chapters for you, I hate being left on cliffhangers when I'm reading fics, so I'll post the upcoming chapters as fast as I can. I'm a little disappointed by the lack of feedback from you guys. To my loyal reviewers thank you so very much, your words give me inspiration when my own have been wrung dry. These chapters are for you, I'd love to read any theories people might have about the direction the story is taking, am I as obvious as I think I might be? Let me know your thoughts. xoxo

**HARRY**

"You have to tell someone Harry! You can't just disappear from the house without a word to anyone!" Ginny whisper yelled at him as he continued throwing supplies into a rusack.

"I have told someone, I've told you, I've told Ron. I'll be fine Gin."

"Yeah, don't worry sis, I'll have your boyfriend back in one piece, promise." Ron chimed from his place on Harry's bed.

Ginny scowled, crossing her arms, "Forgive me if I'm not confident in my brothers ability to keep you both alive." She said sarcastically.

Harry turned, gripping Ginny by the back of the neck, "Ginny I trust Hermione, she has never lead me astray, not once. I need to trust her now, I don't know why, but I just do."

Ginny huffed, "This had better be worth it, Harry."

Harry smiled before pulling her into a tight hug, "Don't worry Gin, I'll be fine."

Ron grumbled impatiently, "Come on lovebirds, time waits for no man."

The couple pulled apart looking at Ron strangely, his ears reddened as his expression took a defensive stance, "What? Hermione says it all the time."

They both blinked, "We didn't realise you were listening." Ginny offered lamely.

Ron scowled, "I may not be a genius but I do listen, Gin."

Harry stepped forward before this became a fight, "We get it, you listen. Come on, we need to get out of here while we can still slip out." Harry lead them quietly out of his room and down the stairs. It was late in the evening and everyone had retreated to their own space. Harry was about to let out a breathe of victory when they were suddenly stopped by a lilting voice coming from the doorway to the drawing room behind them.

"Harry? You might want to take this while you're gone."

The three turned slowly to see Luna standing in the doorway holding out Harry's invisibility cloak. The three blanched before Harry stepped forward taking the cloak almost hesitantly from her hands.

"Err, thanks Luna."

The blonde smiled cheerfully, "Good luck, Harry."

She turned skipping down the hall, humming a whimsical tune.

Ron and Ginny stepped up beside Harry, both with identical looks of puzzlement.

"I know I've said it before, but she really is kind of brilliant."

The two Weasley siblings looked at Harry in unison blinking as Harry stuffed the cloak into his bag before turning for the door.


	64. Chapter 64

**DRACO**

For some reason Granger had been avoiding him most of the day. Spending her time flitting amongst the children and drinking tea with his mother in the gardens. He didn't think he'd ever seen her spend so much time in his mothers presence. He could feel her tumultuous emotions like a series of waves crashing into him. It was irritating for the most part.

He decided to approach her about it when she went to the dinning hall for dinner with the children, following idly at a leisurely pace.

When he came to the doors and looked around he didn't see her at first glance until his eyes zeroed in on a certain young blonde smirking in the direction of a certain curly haired witch. Narrowing his eyes, Draco strode over to the table determinedly, pulling out a chair across from the young witch in front of him and sitting down with a scarily blank expression.

"Do you have something to tell me?" He asked silkily.

The girl in front of him loiled at him blankly, "I don't know what you're talking about."

Draco leant forward, leaning his forearms on the table, "She's been avoiding me all day, why do you think that might be?"

Amelia shrugged, "We spoke briefly this morning, I was under the impression that she was looking for you."

Draco narrowed his eyes, "What did you talk about?"

Amelia's eyes were dancing once more, "She asked me about the book I was reading and summoned it when I was being evasive. It was on Veela mating habits. She asked why I was reading it and I told her that you had asked me to help you read up on the mating fever, then I told her you were on the pitch last I saw, then she left."

If Draco were capable of looking annoyed he never had more than at that moment.

"It didn't occur to you to lie?"

Amelia shrugged again and his eye twitched, "Why would I lie? We're not getting anywhere and you would have had to talk about it some time. I just broke the ice a bit for you."

Draco bit back a growl, it was done now, nothing he did could undo it. Sighing he leant back in his chair. "You're a brat." He muttered under his breathe.

Amelia sat up straight taking a drink before speaking conversationally, "And you're a pussy."

Draco threw her a stink eye before draining his glass and standing, "I'm off to find Theo."

Amelia looked up from her plate, "He's in the lounge with Hannah and Blaise."

Draco raised a brow, "You know this how?"

Amelia shrugged, "Hannah said she was going to keep dumb and dumber in check when she left the gardens earlier. That generally means they're in the lounge getting drunk."

Draco muttered an obscenity before leaving the room hurriedly, not noticing the curly haired witch who was currently crouched down next to some children feigning interest in their conversation, or Amelia watching the scene unfold, snickering before returning to her dinner.


	65. Chapter 65

**HARRY**

Harry looked around the forest unsurely, wand lit with a map in front of his face. He imagined the occasional glowing lights coming from the trees were pixies. He didn't want to speculate what else might be out there.

Ron growled when he stumbled over a root, "Why couldn't we just apparate to the same place as last time? I feel like an idiot stumbling around in the dark."

Harry rubbed his forehead, "There was wand fire the last time a group apparated into that location. I didn't want to take the chance that they traced our magical signatures back to that point. it's not that far from here anyways, maybe an hour's hike in that direction." Harry raised his finger pointing through the darkness.

Ron squinted into the trees, "How do you know?"

Harry pointed at the map, "You see those red dots? That's us, Hermione showed me how to do a mobile plotting spell to help the field operatives when they went on scouting missions. She got the idea from the marauders map."

Ron blinked, "Even when she's not here she's brilliant."

Harry grinned and began the long walk to the location they'd marked on the map. Ron stumbled behind him occasionally but the for the most part the woods were silent. It put him on edge, he didn't like the silence, silence meant they were being watched. By what, he wasn't sure he wanted to find out. He didn't clue Ron in on his misgivings, brave as he might be, Ron could be quite a scaredy cat for lack of a better term at times.

Looking up he noticed the moon had broken free from the clouds and it's almost full shape lit the forest in soft glowing light. Putting his wand away as he could now see fairly well. Ron followed his lead and stepped a lot less noisily than before.

Taking a breathe Harry kept one eye on his map, taking note that they were slowly beginning to close in on the point in which Hermione had first vanished.

Once they finally reached their destination Ron huffed lightly and Harry looked about him. The moon was almost directly above them at this point so the area was well lit. It took him several moments but after casting his eyes around wildly he zeroed in on a light glow through the trees. It was far enough away that they couldn't really be seen but for the light signalling their location. Harry elbowed Ron in the ribs and pointed off through the trees in the direction of the light, Ron squinted and raised his brows in surprise when he noticed what Harry had spotted.

"Do you think that's him?"

Harry looked around, "It has to be. The location is too random for some stranger to be out here. Were in the forbidden forest after all."

Ron nodded unsurely, "Maybe we should put the cloak on now and sneak up on them? Be sure before we reveal ourselves."

Harry looked thoughtful, it was probably for the best really, "Okay, let's do it, we should silence our footsteps too."

"Good thinking."

The two wizards manouvered under the cloak and cast the appropriate charms on their feet before stepping off into the night. After a while Harry couldn't bare it and spoke in a hushed whisper, "Ron cover your mouth, you're breathing in my ear."

"Sorry."

As they got closer to the glowing embers of the fire they noticed two figures sitting within a cropping of trees in a perfect circle. One was long and lean, sitting on a rock propped up against a tree and twirling a wand expertly between his fingers. The other was leant up against a tree with one hand and his ankle crossed over the other casually.

They were talking in quiet voices that Harry was unable to make out, they crept closer until they were just outside the tree line, the one sitting on the rock stopped twirling his wand suddenly and looked in their direction even though Harry knew he couldn't see them.

"Evening Potter. Weasley."

Harry stood frozen as he processed that familiar drawling voice. It lacked its usual arrogance and had definitely deepened over the years but there was no mistaking it.

Ron stepped forward, pulling the cloak off hurriedly, squinting through the darkness of the trees to make out the familiar strangers face.

"Malfoy?!"

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's it for now! I'm going to edit the next few chapters tonight, depending how I do I might post them later or tomorrow. The wait won't be long I promise, leave me your thoughts! xoxo


	66. Chapter 66

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! :) as promised, I'm posting tonight, it's pretty late but I don't think I'll be sleeping anytime soon. I'm closing in on my written chapters so I'll probably spend some time fleshing more out before I post again. Then again, that could be as early as tomorrow, sometimes I write as many as ten in an hour or two, just depends how in the zone I am. Reviews always help in that regard ;) so if you want more chapters remember to leave your words, they help the inspiration fairy sprinkle dust on my brain. ;) xo

**DRACO**

"Time to go." Draco spoke loudly in the din of the lounge. He'd been here for hours waiting until it was the right time to leave. Looking at his watch he stood, he'd opted for fitted black robes with a hooded cloak.

Theo was dressed in a more blasé outfit, fitted suit pants with a white buttoned shirt and tie. His attempt to look suave might have succeeded if he hadn't loosened his tie ridiculously low and his shirt was creased to hell. It didn't help that he looked half blind to the world. Looking to his left he noticed Hannah was giving him a particularly ferocious stink eye.

Pulling a sobering potion from his pocket he stepped forward and pulled his drunken companion to his feet. Theo swayed lightly, holding onto Draco's forearms as he steadied himself and inspected Draco's face closely.

"Oh, alright you uptight wanker." Theo held out his hand and Draco placed the potion in his grasp.

Theo drank it down quickly, burping behind a closed fist for good measure. Draco stepped back and looked at his watch again. They were cutting it close and it would take a while for Theo to completely sober up. Sighing, Draco stepped forward and grasped Theo by the shoulder marching him in the direction of the doors, "We'll be back by two." He called over his shoulder, Theo stumbled beside him and waved a tipsy hand in farewell.

After walking through several hallways and down a flight of stairs, Theo was beginning to come to grips with reality.

"Isn't Granger coming to see you off?" He asked, shaking his head and rubbing his eyes blearily.

"We've had a miscommunication of sorts."

Theo examined his casual demeanour closely, "What did you do?"

Draco side eyed him, "Why does it have to be me that did something?"

Theo examined his nails, "Granger's as close to a saint as they come. So what did you do?"

Before Draco could form a reply the witch in question popped into existence in front of them, stalling their steps.

Theo looked between the two casually, leaning against a wall and crossing his arms, "'Lo Granger."

Hermione dipped her head in his direction, "Theo."

Draco watched her closely as she turned her attention to him. She seemed to be struggling to maintain eye contact. He could feel the apprehension coming off of her in waves, it tickled him that she was so worried.

"Draco?" She said in a broken whisper.

"Yes Granger?"

She straightened her spine, "I just wanted to thank you again, for what you're doing. It means a lot to me."

Draco eyed her noncommittally, "I know."

She opened her mouth to say more when Draco stepped closer, invading her space, "We'll talk when I get back, yes?"

Hermione blushed lightly, nodding her head and avoiding his eyes.

"Okay." She whispered. Stepping back, she watched them as they disappeared around the corner and into the night.

Draco pulled out a length of rope, as was their usual method of transportation, holding it out for Theo to take, gripping tight before saying the spell that carried the Wizards to their destination.

Theo stumbled back and fell on his ass when they landed. Draco rolled his eyes, tossing the rope to Theo before using his wand to light a small campfire and climbing onto a rock buried in the side of a large tree at the edge of the fairy circle.

Theo awkwardly pulled himself to his feet, stuffing the rope in his pocket before stumbling over to a tree and propping himself up with a huffing breath.

Draco began twirling his wand between his fingers, watching his unkempt friend pull himself together. This was Theo's routine. Anytime he had to go on a trip away from The Plantation he'd get roaring drunk before taking a sobering potion. He said it helped clear his head. Draco was familiar with the odd behaviours people adopted to cope in certain situations and never questioned it. He'd seen stranger things.

"Do you think he'll show?" Theo asked into the silence of the trees.

Draco spun his wand idly before answering, "He'll show, he would be far too curious to let it go."

Theo scratched his chin, "And you're sure you want to do this? Give up mastery of the most powerful wand in the world?"

Draco looked pensive, "The sooner it's rid of me the better."

Theo looked at his friend curiously, "You wouldn't have said that three years ago."

Draco looked up from his twirling wand, "There years ago I was a foolish idiot."

Draco's head snapped up suddenly and he sniffed at the air, "He's here."

Theo looked at Draco curiously, "How do you know?"

Draco inhaled deeply, "I can smell him, he's brought someone with him. Weasel probably."

Theo frowned, "How can you tell?"

Draco sniffed, "He smells like food. Every story Granger's told me about them he always seems to be eating."

Theo snickered, watching closely as Draco's eyes seemed to almost glow in the darkness as they tracked an invisible presence around the perimeter of the trees. When they stopped he spoke in a soft drawl, "Evening Potter. Weasley."

He continued twirling his wand absently as a large body awkwardly pushed through the trees suddenly, gasping and floundering as he stared at him incredulously.

"Malfoy?!" Weasley gaped at him, Theo stayed leant up against his tree, watching with open curiosity as the scene played out.


	67. Chapter 67

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Would you believe, I was editing this chapter in bed last night with every intention of posting it, and fell asleep before I was finished!?! I woke up at 2am when I realised what had happened! XD My humble apologies, this is it, the confrontation. One of my reviewers requested that this chapter be written from Harry's perspective which fortunately, I had already done. Draco's perspective is always a fun trip, but he's so nonplussed by everything and this is a very intense chapter, Harry was my only choice. I never imagined that I would be one of those authors who added songs and playlists, BUT I feel that Till it's gone, by Yelawolf really reflects the emotional status of this meeting if you wanted some background music. As always, please leave me your thoughts or theories, I'll be writing as much as I can before the next update so I can keep ahead. ;) xoxo

**HARRY**

Harry stood dumbfounded under his cloak as he watched the familiar blonde slide forward on his perch. There was no mistaking that platinum hair and angular features, he'd changed over the years but this was definitely Draco Malfoy. He wondered what the hell Hermione was playing at here.

So distracted was he by the blonde that he didn't notice when his companion crept up on him from the side, giving a whispery, "Hello." Making him jump and his hood fall back.

"What's going on here? Where's Hermione?" Harry demanded.

Malfoy clucked his tongue, "I know she told you to come alone, why is it you've brought Weasley along?"

Harry gripped his wand tight, pushing his cloak back out of the way and exposing his body. Malfoy's friend seemed to be content with watching on silently with dancing eyes and Ron was motionless, at a loss.

"You brought a friend, don't see why me bringing someone is a problem." Harry replied with hardened eyes.

Draco smirked, "Theo? He's harmless, he's just here to send word back if I get murdered."

Theo had slumped against a nearby rock lazily and pulled a short length of rope from his pocket, tying it in complicated knots.

Harry swung his eyes back around to Malfoy who was still reclined against his boulder, Ron had hardened his stance, wand at the ready by his side, eyeballing Malfoy suspiciously.

"Why did she send you here?" Harry asked, though a heavy weight in the pit of his stomach had given him an idea.

Malfoy's pale grey eyes swung around to meet his bottle greens and Harry almost flinched at the coldness he saw there. His indifference made Harry nervous, he felt his hackles rising slowly, he didn't like feeling nervous.

"During Granger's stay with us, she regaled me with a story. One that leant some explanation to the events of the battle of Hogwarts."

His eyes held Harry's captive like a snake, hypnotising him slowly before going for the kill, "She told me that the reason neither of you won the fight was that neither of you were the true master of the Elder wand. That the Elder wand's true master had been Dunbledore and conveniently enough, passed to me when I disarmed him on the astronomy tower, which Potter witnessed, with me so far?"

Harry and Ron remained silent as Draco went on, "As it remains, I have a target on my back whilst I remain undefeated in a duel." Draco stood up and removed his cloak. Cracking his neck as he prowled around the perimeter of the trees.

"You always wanted to beat me in a wand fight one on one Potter, here's your chance."

Harry looked at Malfoy with open suspicion, "If you know about the wand, then why would you offer this to me? Why wouldn't you keep it for yourself?"

Draco twirled his wand absently as his stroll slowed, "My reasons are my own Potter, do you really think Granger would have told me this story if she thought I would use the information for myself?"

Ron snorted, "You could have used legilmency to get it out of her head."

Malfoy looked at Ron like he was moron and Harry suddenly got the feeling that perhaps he knew their friend a lot better than he was letting on.

"Alright," Harry called, stepping forward, gripping his wand tightly, "I'll duel you."

Draco smirked rolling his shoulders, before straightening, arms tucked loosely behind his back.

Harry corrected his position, taking an offensive stance, "Let's go, Malfoy."

" _Stupefy!_ "

Harry watched as Malfoy swung backwards at the waist as his spell went over his head before circling back up and swinging his arm in a wide slice, sending a harsh gust of wind at Harry, knocking him over before quickly disarming him with a nonverbal expelliarmus.

Malfoy stepped over, picking his wand up nonchalantly before dismissively tossing it back to him.

Ron and Theo stood off to the side, watching wide eyed as the duel began anew.

"Alright." Harry smiled as he spun around in a wide ark, nonverbally flinging an explosive charge at Malfoy who rolled quickly to the ground, throwing up a transparent bluish shield at the last second to protect himself from the blast.

Harry threw another stupefy before Malfoy could rise, watching in dismay as he dodged it effortlessly before swinging around and cracking his wand like a whip. Harry felt the phantom tail crack against his shoulder, snapping his eyes up angrily he thought he saw Malfoy's eyes flash a glowing silver before his arm snapped out again, Harry rolled low and shot off a disarming spell with Malfoy side stepped with ease. Harry's eyes hardened in determination.

It had been at least half an hour when Harry finally caught Malfoy off guard. He'd been amazed with the wizards deceptive skills with a wand. His casual stance giving nothing of his next move. Twice more Harry thought he saw Malfoys eyes flash silver before he could examine them more closely. Any doubts about the reality rolling around in his head he might have hinging on the chance he was projecting a worst fear. By the time he'd finally managed to successfully disarm the wizard he was heaving lightly with a sweaty brow. Malfoy seemed as unaffected as ever and Harry scrunched his brow in confusion. Malfoy hadn't even broken a sweat.

Sticking his wand in his pocket, Harry wiped his sweaty palms off on his pants. Grimacing when Draco stepped over to his wand and picked it up with nary a hair out of place.

Ron and Theo remained silent from the sidelines, watching the two wizards collect themselves in the quiet of the clearing.

Malfoy stepped over to his boulder and shrugged his cloak back on before turning to face the Gryffindors, "Safe travels, Potter."

He walked over to his silent companion who slowly unwound the rope from his wrist, "Wait!" Malfoy and Theo turned to Harry, "How is she?"

Malfoy watched Harry silently, he was afraid he wouldn't answer the question when he heard his voice float softly in the darkness, "She's fine, Potter."

It was Ron who broke the calm, "If she's fine why isn't she here? Why can't she come back with us?"

Draco slid those blank pale eyes over to the redhead and Harry could almost feel him shudder at his side.

"You'll have to take that up with her I'm afraid, she has a means of communicating with you if I'm not mistaken."

Harry stepped forward to speak but Ron beat him to the punch, "How are we supposed to trust that? How do we know that Veela isn't manipulating her into saying or doing what he wants?"

Harry swore he saw Malfoy smirk, "I assure you, Granger is perfectly safe."

He turned towards his friend once more when Ron stopped him with a hand on his shoulder, "Who is it?" Harry felt what was left of his stomach drop.

Malfoy looked down his nose at him, "I don't think that's really any of your business now is it?"

Ron drew up, wand extended, "Who is it Malfoy? Tell us! Tell us so I can rip his head off for ever touching my girlfriend!"

Harry stiffened as the indifference on Malfoy' face seemed to freeze over, his eyes suddenly flashed a glowing silver as he rose up to his full height, pinning Ron with a hard stare.

"Oh?" He asked quietly, "Why don't you?"

"Draco mate, lets just go-" Theo tugged at his friends sleeve haplessly before the wizard slid forward, stepping into Ron's space quietly.

Harry suddenly felt very ill, the blood drained from his face as his fears were now beyond confirmed.

He grabbed Ron by the arm, "Ron, you need to back off-"

The redheaded wizard tugged his arm back, eyes swinging from Harry to Malfoy like a yoyo, unaware of the almost silent growl that was now emanating from the blonde's chest.

"Why? So he can protect the poncy Veela that's probably raping Hermione as we speak?"

Any remaining colour in Harry's face left as he slowly slid his eyes back to Malfoy who somehow looked like a wild animal about to attack. His preternatural differences becoming more and more apparent with every word that came out of Ron's idiot mouth.

"If I could, I'd kill him right here, right now! She's _supposed_ to be with _me!_ " That appeared to be the breaking point as Malfoy's eyes flashed their brightest and a rumbling snarl ripped from his throat. He crouched low suddenly, incisors dropping from underneath his top lip and he seemed to be drawing an electrical charge from somewhere inside his chest, crackling along his skin before erupting from his skin, shooting out and up his arm and striking Ron down in one deadly blow.

Harry held perfectly still as the blonde seemed to heave with every breathe as he stood motionless before his unconscious bestfriends body. It was Malfoys friend who interceded. Beyond both their notice, he had slunk into the trees behind Malfoy and cast a nonverbal Stupefy at Malfoy's back, dropping him to the ground instantly in a unconscious heap.

Stepping around the sleeping bodies casually, Theo leant down and picked up Draco's wand and pocketing it before propping him up, Harry broke free of his frozen limbo and ran to his friend.

"Ron!" He slapped his face and watched panicked as he remained unresponsive.

"He'll wake up in an hour or two." Harry's eyes snapped up to see the man, Theo was watching him curiously from his awkward position under Malfoy's arm.

"It's not really him, it can't be, is it?" Harry asked in a trembling voice.

Theo looked down at his prone friend, head lolling forward, "Is it so hard to believe?"

Harry shook his head furiously, clenching his fist and glaring angrily, "They'll never work, there's not a snowballs chance in hell."

Theo tilted his head, observing him, "Perhaps hell froze over."

Before Harry could reply, Theo had wrapped the rope tightly around both his and Malfoy's wrists and with a salute, muttered a portus, the two Slytherins sucked from sight.


	68. Chapter 68

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! I'm back! Did you miss me? ;) I've been having a bit of trouble delving deeper into my character profiles so I decided to post a couple chapters instead. I know I say this every time I update, but I would really love your feedback, let me know what you love about the story and what you hate. Just one comment has the power to help me find a new perspective. I shit you not. To all my diligent reviewers, bless you. Whenever I'm feeling stuck I go back and read your words to help me get in the right head space. I really love writing this story but fleshing out chapters and editing those chapters is a harrowing task. Especially when I read old chapters to make sure my plotlines are matching up and I see errors! Errors everywhere! Bah! I'll eventually go back and fix it, but like I said it's harrowwwwwwinnngggg. I definitely could never be a book editor, ironic considering I studied it at Uni. Once again I'm rambling, remember to let me know what you're thinking so far! xoxo

**HERMIONE**

Hermione had been waiting for over two hours now. Bundled up in her oversized flannel sleepwear she smuggled back from Grimmauld place, reading in the window seat. She had hoped faintly that they would return promptly and without issue.

When she finally heard a soft rapping at the bedroom door she looked up from her her book quickly, biting her lip before putting it down on the seat beside her and scurrying across the room. When she came to the door she paused.

Hermione heard the light knocking again, she sucked in a breathe and opened the doors. What stood on the other side temporarily made her heart stop as she took in the image of Draco floating unconsciously behind a dishevelled looking Theo.

"What happened?" She asked in a whisper shout, quickly opening the door wide so Theo could levitate Draco into the room and deposit him on the bed.

Theo turned his attention to Hermione, "All went well. Potter managed to disarm Him. We were about to head on our merry way when he asked how you are. Potter started indirectly asking questions about him, Draco got a little evasive. Weasley lost his temper, said a bunch of loud ignorant crap that set Draco off. He demonstrated right there in front of them and attacked Weasley, I knocked him out before he could do any serious damage, he'll probably be a little agitated when he wakes up."

Hermione's eyes had widened comically as Theo walked to the end of the bed, propping himself up against the bannister.

"So they know?" She asked in a shaky voice.

Theo gave a her a look of sympathy, reaching out to pat her shoulder in what Hermione assumed was supposed to be a soothing manner.

"If they don't then they really are as thick as Draco claimed in school."

Hermione dropped her face to her hands, "This couldn't get any worse."

"Cheer up Granger, a good nights sleep and this will all seem like a particularly horrible dream."

Hermione smiled weakly, "You're a glass half full kind of guy aren't you Theo?"

Theo removed Draco's wand and placed it on the bedside table before turning, "Not sure what you're getting at, but life is quite simple isn't it? Good things happen, bad things happen. Why worry yourself over it? It's not going to make life any easier."

Hermione bit her lip, watching Draco closely from the corner of her eye, "Draco said something similar to me when I first came here. I'm not really sure how to handle anything anymore."

Theo sighed, "Don't be so hard on yourself Granger, it'll only give you wrinkles."

Hermione laughed weakly, "I don't suppose you could help me get him into pajamas?"

"Not a problem." Theo chimed, walking over to Draco's bureau and finding the appropriate drawer with ease.

Walking back to the bed Theo faltered, pausing to look Hermione up and down, "Granger, what the hell are you wearing?"


	69. Chapter 69

**HARRY**

Harry landed in the alley behind the house with a crash. Ron's limp body knocking him off his feet with his dead weight.

" _Oooof!_ "

The wind had been knocked out of him and he struggled to pull himself upright. Looking around, Harry was at a loss. Before his mind could lead him down any rabbit holes he turned to his unconscious friend. Groaning before pressing his eyes into his palms.

Sighing, Harry stood up. Hoisting Ron's dead weight up over his shoulder by his arm before walking them both to the end of the alley with some difficulty.

When he reached the end, he propped his friend against the wall and looked about him. It was early in the morning, the street was deserted.

Turning his attention to Ron, he sighed, leaning down to sling his arm over his back, carrying his heavy frame around the wall, trying to appear as calm as possible as he made his way up the Disillusioned stairs. Once he came to the door, he lowered Ron to the ground, propping him up with his shoulder before using his wand to unlock the door with some complicated swirls and flicks. A cautionary measure, curtosey of Hermione and Kingsley.

Harry felt a sharp pang in his chest at the thought but pushed it away as he slipped quietly into the house. When he opened the door, he placed Ron on the floor against the wall before turning to lock the door behind him.

When he straightened back up and turned it was to a worried looking Ginny and Luna who had managed to creep up on him in the dark.

Harry jumped in surprise and Ginny spoke, "What happened?"

He scratched the back of his neck, looking anywhere but at the worried redhead in front of him, lost for words on how to explain what he'd come to know.

Luna tightened the belt on her purple robe and swept down gracefully. Checking Ron's pulse before lifting an eyelid and examining him closely.

"'He's been knocked out."

Ginny rounded back to Harry as he floundered for the right words or where to begin.

"He was the Veela." He said stupidly.

Ginny gaped in surprise, turning back to her unconscious brother, Luna was inspecting his clothes closely, reaching out and lifting his shirt, a black scorch mark was marring his left side.

"What happened?" Ginny asked dubiously.

Harry swallowed, "Malfoy." He muttered, still in disbelief.

Luna turned her back slowly and made obvious motions of tending to Ron's unconscious form. Ginny's arms dropped from their crossed hold, down to her sides as she took a shaky step closer to him.

"What was Malfoy?" She asked, trepidation leaking into her voice.

Harry blinked, "Malfoy. Hermione sent him there to give mastery of the Elder Wand to me."

Ginny gasped, covering her mouth with her hand as her eyes widened in shock. Luna continued to poke and prod at Ron's unconscious form who now had a thin trail of drool forming on his bottom lip.

"We showed up, Malfoy told us why he was there, we duelled, when I disarmed him he was just going to leave. He brought a friend with him who must've been holding a portkey. I don't know how they got it to work in the forest, but it did. I tried to ask him about Hermione before they left, Ron got angry and lost it, he started yelling, before I could do anything Malfoy…changed."

Luna took this moment to step into the conversation, "What did he say?"

Harry felt like he might throw up or pass out, he couldn't figure out which would come first.

"He didn't say much of anything, mostly he just…growled."

"I meant what did Ron say to provoke him?" Luna asked patiently.

Harry was gobsmacked, unable to form a logical response to the insanity going on inside his head.

Ginny stood gaping, also lost for words as her eyes darted back and forth between Harry and her brother, the gears in her mind shifting as she pieced together the things Harry wasn't saying.

"So you're telling us that _Draco Malfoy_ is _Veela_ and that he attacked Ron in the forest when he started mouthing off about Hermione?"

Harry was beginning to look a little green.

"Yes-" he croaked in a disbelieving voice, "That's exactly what I'm telling you."

Luna huffed, "Ron is lucky to have escaped with a scratch."

"Back up a minute," Ginny broke in, " _Malfoy_ is the Veela that took Hermione?"

Before Harry could reply she continued, "And she sent _him_ to _you_ , to give you mastery of the elder wand in the war against Voldemort?"

Harry didn't bother replying, he knew his girlfriend had managed to piece it together faster than her fat headed brother apparently had.

She blinked, "I think I'm getting a migraine."


	70. Chapter 70

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! How have we been? Sorry for the break, I needed some time away from this story as I kept hitting road blocks. I know where this story is headed, just sometimes it's hard to find the right words or figure out where your starting points are. Never fear, I got it back eventually, I'm still several chapters ahead and I wrote an absolute buttload last night so you might be in for an interesting week! To my reviewers, as always, I adore you. Usually if I have trouble I just call my up friend and tell her to give me three random inanimate objects, it's so easy to build a story around an anchor when your having trouble if any of you care for my lame advice hahaha xoxo

**DRACO**

  
When Draco woke, it was mid morning. The light coming through the windows brightened the room as he looked around groggily. He was draped heavily over Granger's belly, his arms pinned her torso to the bed and his own was wedged between her thighs.

He inspected her face closely, seeing that she was most definitely asleep he pulled himself up and examined his surroundings.

Their clothes were in shreds around the bed, several gouges lined the sheets as well. Draco felt his blood run cold as he looked at the sleeping witch below him. For the most part she looked completely peaceful in her slumber. Upon closer inspection he realised that wasn't the case. Deep incisor bites riddled her neck and shoulders. Several also covered the tops of her breasts, a numbness took him over when he looked down and noticed the deep punctures in her inner thighs amidst purplish bruises.

Draco swallowed the bile rising up his throat before carefully rising from the bed. Watching the sleeping witch a moment before leaning down and shaking her shoulder lightly.

"Granger, wake up."

Hermione groaned, rolling over and away from his reaching hands. Huffing, Draco strode across to the bathroom, once inside he went straight to the indented bath and began turning different knobs. The fragrant scent of the waters hit his nose and he grimaced before standing and turning to the wall vanity. Opening up one of the mirrored cupboards to retrieve a lime green potion. Closing the door quietly he turned back to turn off the taps of the now full tub before returning to the bedroom.

Striding over to Hermione, he slid his arms under her body, rolling her before lifting her from the bed and cradling her to his chest. His witch sighed in her sleep, burrowing closer.

Draco carried her to the bathroom, placing her in a sitting position on the vanity and propping her up with his arms.

When she remained dead to the world he sighed, shaking her shoulder gently until she stirred.

"Granger, you need to drink this." He said in a gravelly voice.

Blinking blearily, Hermione cracked her lids open slowly, peering at him through slitted eyes.

"Here, drink." Draco held up the thick green concoction, waiting until she opened her lips before tipping its contents into her mouth.

When she sputtered slightly and scrunched her nose, he rubbed her back, "I know, it's nasty."

Hermione sighed, slumping against his chest. Draco frowned, lifting her by the backs of her thighs and wrapping her limbs around his frame as he carried them both to the pool.

He stepped down slowly until they were both submerged before swinging her legs around to the cradle of his arms and sliding back onto the seat. He summoned a washcloth from the bench wandlessly, dipping it in the water before bringing his arm up and rubbing it over her abused neck and shoulders gently.

For the most part Granger remained dead to the world. He wasn't sure how aware she was but the soft contentment wafting off of her calmed him.


	71. Chapter 71

**HARRY**

"Weasley could have _died_ Potter, _you_ could have _died_." McGonagall said, Harry remained oblivious to her scolding as he watched his friend being examined by Padma, Grimmauld Place's unofficial healer. Kingsley stood outside the door with a worried looking Molly and Arthur, talking in hushed whispers while Ginny sat by the end of Ron's Bed, relaying any information she could to Padma about how the wound was inflicted.

McGonagall clucked her tongue, "Potter, Weasley will be fine, Miss Patil has assured us beyond all doubt. We need to discuss what happened when you met with Mister Malfoy."

Harry flinched. He'd tried to numb his brain that particular wizards existence and was failing miserably.

"There's not much else to say, Ginny told you everything when she brought you down here."

"Be that as it may Potter, I'll be needing a thorough first hand accounting from the both of you, as soon as Weasley is able." She gave him that same stern stare from her days teaching transfiguration at Hogwarts, Harry felt that it must be a Pavlovian response when he shrunk slightly under her hardened eyes.

McGonnagall turned her gaze to Ron's prone form, frowning infinitesimally before turning to the entry to engage in conversation with Kingsley and the Weasleys, their eyes collectively flickering to Ron or Harry between hushed whispers.

Harry watched Ron closely from his place against the wall. His worry over his unconscious best friend coming and going, he had yet to wake but would occasionally twitch. Padma had deduced that it was a residual side effect of being struck by a lightning charge.

Now, lost in his moment of solitude, Harry's mind began to race with everything that he now knew. Images flickered through his mind, pleading with Firenze in the forest for information about his lost friend, seeing her step out of the floo, a tight, warm and familiar hug, a bite mark on a neck, so much skin, writhing bodies-

Harry groaned, bending at the waist and burying his face in his hands. This was all too much. Knowing that the creature gyrating over his friends naked body had been _Draco_ _Malfoy_ made his gut churn, breathing slowly through his mouth to keep the bile down, Harry braced himself against the wall before returning to his line of thought.

Hermione had been taken by a Veela, and that Veela was Draco Malfoy. If what Ginny said was true, then he had to be defected. He and his friends had gone into hiding and had been sticking their necks out to harbour pureblood children. Somehow, he had found Hermione and taken her when he realised who she was to him. His brain began to piece the picture before him delicately until he had a crystal clear image.

Hermione may have been taken against her will but she had definitely struck a deal of some sort with Malfoy that guaranteed she stuck around, of that he was certain. What other reason would Malfoy have for giving him mastery of the elder wand? Hermione was a witch of her word, if she had struck a deal with Malfoy, Harry was terrified to contemplate the price she had paid.


	72. Chapter 72

**HERMIONE**

The rays of light bouncing off of the stone walls is what woke her. Blinking blearily, Hermione groaned.

_Why is it so hot?_

Hermione pushed the sheets down around her waist, panting when the morning air slid over her sweat slicked skin. She could feel her heart thumping heavily in her chest and whimpered at the overload of sensations.

The hot sting of something foreign licking through her veins kept her pinned to the bed, her body was a heavy weight that she just couldn't lift.

Changing tactics, Hermione opened her eyes as much as she was able, clenching her teeth when a shudder took her body as she turned her head to the side.

Pale grey eyes observed her intently from a blank, wide set face.

Draco was reclined casually in a black armchair by her head, watching her with an indescernable expression.

"Good morning, little lion."

Hermione's teeth began to chatter before she even opened her mouth, forming words an unexpected strain.

She was even more surprised by the gravelly voice that came from her own mouth, "What's happening to me?"

Draco watched her silently squirm a moment before answering, "I bit you."

She shuddered, opening her mouth, "Wh-why?" Being all she could manage.

His expression was carefully blank, "I can't be positive, Theo suspects it was an instinctual reaction on my part, he assured me you'd be fine within a day or two."

At his words, Hermione suddenly remembered how it was she got here. Waking up in bed with a knocked out Draco on the cusp of demonstrating leaning over her, she had attempted to calm him with soft touches, it had worked for the most part until she had brought up his attack on Ron.

"Shhh- it's okay, it's just us Draco." She'd attempted to calm him with soft touches and low whispers as he broke into alertness.

His growling subsided into a rumbling purr and his muscles had begun to relax as he lowered his body, pressing down over Hermione until he had been smothering her with his form.

She continued soothing him, running her hands up and down his sides whilst he buried his face in her throat.

When he was seemingly calm, caging her to the bed as he'd deemed fit to drape himself over her entirely. He began to purr again and Hermione chuckled.

"I wish you hadn't attacked Ron." She offered up quietly into the silence.

At her words he became silent and unmoving. She hadn't been expecting what came next.

"You lost control." She whispered.

"I did."

Hermione shuddered, "You've bitten me before though."

He watched her squirming a moment more before deigining to answer, "Not so excessively. It seems such a concentrated amount of my venom has affected you more than I anticipated."

Hermione let another shudder take her before answering, _why_ was it so hot?

"What aren't you saying?"


	73. Chapter 73

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How many have you been waiting for Theo's perspective? I like to keep my POV's diverse, I feel it paints a much richer picture, but that's just this woman's opinion. It's pretty late at the moment, but it helps to get back in the zone when I'm actively editing and posting. Drop me a line and give me your thoughts! 
> 
> Peace xo

**THEO**

When Draco came charging into his lab with a disturbed look in his eyes Theo was immediately on edge.

"Morning mate, didn't expect to see you up and about so soon." He smirked slightly from his place behind his observation scopes.

"I need your assistance Theo, now."

Before he could reply, Draco had turned and was back out the room before Theo could blink.

Gathering himself, Theo shook his head as he hurried after Draco who was already at the end of the hall.

By the time he'd caught up they had arrived at Draco's room, the blonde had become twitchy. Theo was beyond curious about this strange behaviour as he was silently led into Draco's private quarters.

What he came upon was a shocking scene. Torn clothes and sheets were scattered by the end of the bed in a haphazard pile. Feathers from desimated pillows littered the area and a delirious witch was currently panting lightly in the bed beneath fresh sheets.

Stepping closer, Theo noticed the sheen of sweat covering her brow and before shifting into scientist mode.

Raising his hand, Theo held his fingers to her wrist gingerly before leaning down and raising one of her eyelids, pulling his wand from his pocket and casting a soft lumos, watching her eye closely to see it following the movement of his wand hand.

He cast several charms over her prone form, checking her vitals diligently before lowering his arm and turning to a stoic Draco, watching silently with a harrowed expression, eyes flickering over Hermione's writhing form with arms crossed tightly across his chest.

"She's delirious."

Draco shot him a cold glare, "I'm aware of that."

"Did she take anything before she went to sleep? Potions? Extracts?"

Theo watched as Draco's spine stiffened, "I bit her."

Theo reassured him, "I've read up on your venom, it's not potent enough to induce psychosis."

Theo was shocked to see Draco composure was beginning to unravel even further, "I bit her a _lot_."

He turned back to the witch lying in the bed, she didn't look to be in any pain. Stepping closer once more, he pushed the neck of her pajamas to the sides, examinining her neck and shoulders closely before raising her arms one at a time to push her sleeves back, for the most part she seemed completely in tact.

"I'm not sure if you've been so desperate for a shag that you're hallucinating, but she doesn't seem to have any bite marks Draco, at least not any recent ones."

The look Draco shot him was ice cold, "I healed her first, idiot."

"Don't hex the messenger," Theo chided absently, lowering back down to raise both eyelids once more before sighing and stepping back with a ponderous expression, "I think I've figured it out."

Draco growled impatiently, "Well?"

"How many times did you bite her?"

Draco's eyes flickered to the witch and back to him, "At least a dozen."

Theo blanched and looked at him with a baffled expression, "She's high."

Draco blinked slowly, processing his words, Theo explained, "Veela venom induces an amorous…buzz in mates when bitten, especially during copulation. This many bites at one time…she's probably feeling pretty fucking happy right about now."

Draco eyed him shrewdly, "she's going to be alright then?"

"A day or two tops and she'll be right as rain."

Draco eyes snapped back to the dazed witch in his bed, shoulders losing their rigidness slowly until he was once again his usual laconic self.

Theo grinned, "Don't suppose this is the first time you two have done the nasty?"

"Who said we had sex?"

Theo rolled his eyes, "In any case, it would probably be best if I examined your venom, just so I can monitor any unusual side effects."

Draco ignored him completely, stepping closer to the bed, crouching down slowly until he was level with Hermione's face.

Theo watched the scene curiously for a moment, entranced by the picture before him, shaking his head dazedly.

"I'll uh, I'll leave you to it then."

Draco continued to ignore him, eyes fixed on the sleeping witch in the bed.

 


	74. Chapter 74

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I know people have been asking for more dramione bonding, here it is :) xo

**DRACO**

He was watching closely as she began to stir. He hadn't slept, not for a moment, watching over her diligently throughout the night. Theo had assured him she would be fine, that she was just riding out the aftershocks of her high. A cold sweat had taken her in the early morning hours, her fiery hot temperature dropping dramatically as the soft light began to creep up the walls.

She groaned, raising her hand to her forehead absently in her grogginess, Draco could feel a residual cottoning in his mind, giving him a vague idea of how she was feeling.

When her teeth began to chatter and he leant forward, freezing infinitesimally as he watched consciousness seeping into her eyes.

"Why is it so-so cold?"

Hermione scooted back slightly, raising her hands to her upper arms, drawing her blankets higher and shaking slightly.

"You've been…sick."

Hermione's eyes flickered towards Draco so fast he blinked in surprise. When he felt the sudden flash of heat run though him, he stiffened in his seat.

"How long have I been out?" She asked innconcently.

Draco shook his head, pinning her with his eyes, "Almost two days."

Hermione blanched, eyes widening. She looked down, lifting her shirt from her chest and leaning down, taking a small sniff before scrunching her nose.

" _Ugh_ , I reak." she complained, her voice still gravelly with sleep.

"Would you like me to run you a bath?"

She shot him a grateful look and he stood, holding out his hand for her to take, feeling a soft hum run through his body at her touch. He helped her into a seated position before carefully guiding her out of the bed.

Draco led them both into the bathroom silently, he felt Hermione's curiosity prickling at his brain and a distinct tang but chose to remain silent as he led them to the bath before releasing her and leaning down to turn on several taps. Seemingly already knowing which Faucets to turn.

He stood back up silently, walking over to the witch with a extraordinary display of bed head and standing in front of her without word. She looked up at him shyly when he reached out and began unbuttoning her sweaty sleep shirt.

She held his eyes as he continued, standing stick still as he worked and they watched the other in silence. He with a carefully blank expression, and she with open curiosity.

She barely noticed when he slipped the top off of her shoulders, letting it drop to the floor.

She blushed prettily when his hands lowered to her pants, running his fingers under the band along her hips before pushing them down around her ankles.

He held her hand up to help her step out of them before kicking them away. Turning toward the tub, he helped her down into the water.

When she was seated on the bench, reclining with a soft sigh, he summoned a towel, tucking it behind her head before flicking his wrist towards the taps, turning them off silently.

He summoned a cloth from the vanity before leaning down to roll up his pant legs, sitting on the stone floor behind her and lowering his legs into the water either side of her arms.

Leaning forward and dipping the cloth into the water, he began running it over her skin in gentle strokes, wiping away the dried sweat from her chest and arms.

He pushed his sleeves up absently as he continued bathing her when he felt her stiffen between his thighs.

Looking down, he noticed her staring at his arm, his left forearm to be exact.

Slowly, hesitantly, she reached out, pressing her thumb to the faded black skull, running the pad of her finger over the snake curled through its mouth.

"It's funny." She murmured, "I hadn't really noticed it before."

"It's usually covered."

Her head tilted back until she met his eyes, "Did it hurt?"

He held her eyes, "Very much."

Her eyes flickered back down to his arm, "Does it bother you?" Draco murmurred.

He saw her chewing her lip, "Yes." She whispered.

Draco sighed, reaching out to roll down his sleeve when her hand slid across and her fingers stilled his movements.

"Don't, we all have our scars."

He watched closely as the fingers of her right hand slowly traced thin red lines criss crossing feintly in a derogerorty word over her own left forearm.

"My aunt." He murmurred, unconsciously slipping his hand down to follow the path her own fingers had traced.

Hermione shuddered, "Yes. Bellatrix had many deranged qualities."

"She did." His voice had not raised in pitch as he watched her arm transfixed.

Without his notice, she slipped her fingers up to wrap around his own, "It's not as bad as it used to be."

His eyes flickered down to hers curiously, "It used to be much more prominent, I'm guessing yours too?"

Before he could form a reply she continued, "Before we bonded, it was quite bold and ugly." She lowered her eyes back to their forearms and lining them up together, matching battle scars on display, an ironic composition of their history.

"It's faded though," she whispered, "you can barely make out the letters now."

He remained silent as she examined their skin, reaching out again to run her finger tips over over his tainted flesh, "All scars fade, with time."

Her murmured words were said so quietly he wasn't sure they had been meant for him to hear.


	75. Chapter 75

**FLEUR**

Fleur was currently seated in front of the fireplace in the drawing room, legs curled back as she used magic to levitate a children's book in the air as she read quietly to Victoiré and Teddy, her daughters head curled up against her side while Fleur played with her strawberry blonde curls absently, her other arm stretched over her daughters shoulder and tucked snugly around Teddys shoulders.

"As for the third brother, Death searched for _many_ years but was unable to find 'im-"

"Because he had an invisibility cloak!" Teddy whispered excitedly.

Fleur chuckled, "Yes _Cheri_ , because he had an invisibility cloak."

Before she could continue there was a throat clearing off to the right.

Fleur and the children looked up to see Harry standing off to the side looking disinctly uncomfortable.

Fleur smiled knowingly, "Can we 'elp you 'Arry?"

Harry shuffled his feet uncomfortably, "Ugh, yeah. I was hoping I could talk to you- about Hermione."

Fleur smiled gently, "of course 'Arry."

She looked down at the small children curled up beside her, "Time for bed _Mes Chéris,_ go find Aunt Andromeda so she can help you into your pajamas."

Teddy threw Harry a stink eye before trudging off grumpily and Victoiré huffed, crossing her arms petulantly, not moving until her mother gave her a gentle nudge.

Fleur placed the book on the floor by her feet before gesturing for Harry to take a seat.

"What's on your mind 'Arry?"

He walked over slowly lowering himself into a seated position, leaning on his elbows and looking at the floor.

"It's Hermione." He whispered.

"Yes?"

"I want to know what it means, what it really means for her, to be bonded to Malfoy."

Fleur straightened, "It means she will 'ave a partner who was meant for 'er and only 'er. It means she will know what it is to share 'er soul with another. Bonding is sacred amongst my people, a fordained ordinance that cannot be ignored. To do so is 'erecy."

Harry looked pained, "But _how_ can it be him? _How_ can _Draco fucking Malfoy_ of all people, be _meant_ for _her_? Or  _she_ for _him?_ It doesn't make any sense whatsoever."

"The universe works in mysterious ways. We should never expect something, just because it is expected."

Fleur watched Harry fidget, clearing his throat,whispering "I always thought she would end up with Ron, we all did."

Fleur clucked her tongue, "In another time perhaps, but that time 'as gone. She 'as a new destiny now, all you can do is support 'er."

Harry looked like a lost puppy and Fleur was reminded just how young their revered leader really was.

"What if I don't know how?" He whispered, his expression almost one of agony.

Fleur shot him a winning smile, full of comfort and encouragement, " _Then learn_."

Harry blinked, eyes glazing over slightly as he took her and her words in.


	76. Chapter 76

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello lovelies! I'm gonna post a few new chapters today as it's raining and I'm stuck inside. The story and chapters are really starting to take off again so stick with me! I don't know if it's odd that I've written so many chapters but I feel there's only so much one person can say at any one time. Which is why I keep them short. That's how I get this story moving, procrastination and monotony is so dull. And rather than ramble on about how everything is doomed I like to jump to the next topic of choice. So to cut this ramble short, enjoy and give me your feedback, what are our thoughts? What are we thinking is going to happen? What do we WANT to happen? Leave me a line and I'll see what I can do! ;) xo

**THEO**

"How did Potter take it?" Blaise asked from his slumped position on the couch across from Theo, his arm was draped around Daphne's waist, tracing circles along her hip absently.

"I'm pretty sure he suspected it the moment he saw Draco to be honest." Theo drawled, taking a swig of his fire whiskey.

"Of course he did," Pansy cackled from her place draped over the new piano by the window, head hanging over the side as she observed them all from her upside down position, "Potter isn't an idiot, he's an imbecile, but he's not an idiot."

Hannah raised a brow from her seat beside Theo, "Isn't an imbecile an idiot?"

Pansy clucked her tongue, "Of course not, an imbecile is a moron and an idiot is a halfwit."

Hannah rolled her eyes and Theo chuckled, "Honestly, he was watching Draco with this weird look long before he ever came close to demonstrating. It's not like it isn't obvious anyway, Draco's got all the features and colouring for it."

"So what about Weasley?" Daphne asked.

Theo rolled his eyes, "Now that git is an idiot if I ever met one. Draco's wings had just about  split before he even registered what was happening."

Blaise sniggered and Daphne smirked. Hannah bit her lip hiding a grin and pansy cackled evilly, "fucking Cupid." Rolling over to clutch her stomach as her whole body shook.

"You wouldn't be saying that if you saw it in action." Theo said starring off into space and shuddering.

"You and Aunt Cissa are the only ones who've pissed him off enough to see it, as soon as you stun him he's back to normal." Blaise countered.

Theo shrugged, "What can I say? I have that effect on people."


	77. Chapter 77

**HANNAH**

Hannah was walking down to lunch in the gardens, just having left Theo at the greenhouse. She was humming idly to herself when she felt a hand grab her forearm. Jerking around she came face to face with an annoyed looking Amelia.

The small blonde was clutching a large book across her chest, eyes shifting around uncomfortably.

"I was hoping I could talk to you about something." She said lamely.

"Oh?"

"Yes, it's private. I need to speak to somebody who isn't Draco and who isn't and who isn't Hermione."

"Sure, okay, why don't we take a walk through the gardens? I'm sure we can find a bench in the maze somewhere."Amelia nodded her head once and they began walking in silence towards the tall hedges, Amelia was chewing her lip while Hannah watched her from the corner of her eye. She was familiar with Amelia, the young witch wouldn't say anything unless she wanted to say it.

When they had gone through several twists and turns and came upon a small fountain with a wide seat Amelia immediately walked over and sat down. Shifting awkwardly while Hannah followed, sitting down and waiting for her to speak.

"Draco asked me to research something for him, and I've come to a conclusion that I'm not sure he'll like."

Hannah raised a brow, "What kind of research?"

Amelia bit her lip, "if I tell you, you have to promise you won't tell anyone. I'm only coming to you about it because I need...perspective."

"I promise, I won't tell a soul."

Amelia sighed, "Draco came to me recently about a problem," she glanced up at Hannah, "the mating fever hasn't subsided. He's ready to pounce on Granger at any given moment and it's been driving him mental. So I did some research to see if there was something we could find to help."

She chewed her lip, "The only cause I can find is that he's in heat. Not consciously, he's more or less just crazy horny. There's all these different accountings so none of the information is concrete, I have this book, it's the most reliable source, I just don't know how to approach the subject…delicately ."

Hannah was frozen, the overload of information had sent her into shock.

"Hermione and Draco are having sex?" She asked stupidly.

Amelia scowled, "And they've been sitting on a broomstick kissing. Focus!"

Hannah blinked, taking a moment to collect her thoughts, "This is something you definitely need to tell them." She decided on.

Amelia's scowl deepened, "I'm aware of that."

"Then what exactly do you need from me?"

Amelia raised her brows, "Come on, you can figure this one out."

Hannah looked at Amelia confusedly while the blonde sat with an expectant look, Hannah frowned as she wondered what Amelia could possibly mean, then she got an uneasy and suspicious feeling, looking up, she saw Amelia had stood and was picking up her bag to leave.

"Where are you going?"

Amelia looked at Hannah bored, "Lunch."

Hannah frowned, "What? Why?"

Amelia looked like the cat that got the canary, "You've solved my problem for me."

Hannah went white, "No."

Amelia grinned, "Oh yes, now that you know, there's no way you won't be able to say _something_."

Hannah gaped, _she'd been played._

"You sly, sneaky little Slytherin!" She glared.

Amelia grinned, winking cheekily before turning, waving a hand over he shoulder and leaving Hannah with the ominous book to contemplate what exactly she would end up having to do.


	78. Chapter 78

**HARRY**

It had been several days since Harry's impromptu meet cute with Malfoy. In that time, he'd come to accept what he now knew as fact, although it made him feel queasy even thinking about it.

Ron was another matter altogether. He denied the facts that were right in front of his face, insisting that Hermione was being coerced, Harry had noticed Fleur sending a light stinging hex his way the last time he'd brought it up at dinner.

Then there was Fleur herself, who he had taken to confiding in of late. She understood his worries in a way no one else in the house ever would. She listened patiently and didn't judge him when he asked questions, questions that at this point looking back on all their conversations, were quite stupid.

He didn't like it, and doubted he ever would. But he had accepted it, the picture of Veela connections Fleur had painted for him left him with no illusions. Malfoy would be a permanent fixture in his best friends life whether he liked it or not. She was just that kind of person. That Malfoy's health relied so heavily upon her comforted him some, regardless of all of Fleurs assurances, a weight lifted off of his chest knowing that Hermione had such a tangible hold over Malfoy.

Currently he was lying on his bed, staring unseeingly at the ceiling as his thoughts raced and Ginny snuggled into his side, her leg was thrown over his hip and her hand brushed his side in an absent caress.

Sighing, the red headed witch lifted her head and rolled before slumping back to his chest on her chin. "Maybe you should come with us tomorrow."

Harry's eyes flickered down to Ginnys azure gaze, "We need all the help we can get really, The Quill and Book's list of Muggleborns is pretty high this year."

Harry frowned at the mention of The Quill and Book, shortly after the battle of Hogwarts, McGonnagall and Hermione had lead a mission into the castle to retrieve The Quill of Acceptance and The Book of Admittance from the hidden bowels of the headmasters office. No living man had touched it since its making and it remained as such, tucked away in the attic of Harry's house. They would check the list every once in a while for new muggleborns, they were the most vulnerable in this war, as well as their families. The order had been smuggling those young witches and wizards into grimmauld place or more often out of the country, it was the easiest and fastest way for them to identify muggleborns before the Death Eaters did, although, if a muggleborn child were to perform enough accidental magic to alert the ministry, then there was nothing the order could do for them. Nothing filled Harry with more rage than hearing about Death Eaters torturring those families to death. The sting was eased with the families they managed to save.

"I don’t think Kingsley and McGonnagall would let me out of the house at this point." Harry murmured distractedly.

Ginny huffed, "Can you blame them? You're the master of the elder wand now Harry. Voldemort doesn't know, we have the advantage. You're even more important now."

Harry remained silent, so Ginny went on, "Ever since they cleared active missions you've been off, what's going on with you Harry? Is it Hermione and Malfoy?"

Harry swallowed, "It's Hermione, Its Malfoy, its Ron, its Voldemort. It's everything Gin, are we ever going to get to live a _normal_ _bloody_ _life?_ "

Ginny leant up on her elbows, locking eyes with Harry before leaning down and kissing him slowly for several moment before retreating to brush his hair back, "She's told you she's fine Harry, and for all we know about Hermione, she can hold her own better than anyone else we know. She's still writing to you, she hasn't abandoned us."

Harry frowned, "It's not that, it's just, it's never going to be the same again. Even if we win, even if we put everything back the way it was, it won't ever be the same, not really. And Malfoy is always going to be there with her. No matter what happens."

Ginny ran her thumb over the downward curl of his lip, "His mother saved your life. He saved all your lives in his own house, you told me so yourself."

Harry grumbled, "Your point?"

"My point," Ginny said exasperated, leaning up on her hands and sliding over to straddle Harry's waist before leaning down until their noses were touching, "is we don't _know_ Malfoy. Not really, until we do, we need to reserve judgement."

"Innocent until proven guilty?" Harry asked jokingly, bringing his hands up to caress her hips.

Ginny smirked, whispering "Exactly." Against his lips before leaning in to kiss him softly.

 


	79. Chapter 79

**THEO**

"Hannah came to me a couple of days ago with some information that had been passed on to her from Amelia."

Draco's eyes snapped up and Hermione shifted uncomfortably in her seat. Theo had summoned them both to his lab shortly after his findings.

"After examining her findings and Draco's venom sample, I've come to two conclusions."

Draco arched a brow and Hermione crossed her arms over her chest tightly, tapping her foot.

Theo smirked, leaning forward elbows on his knees, "Draco's venom induces magical pheromone production in the host, which induces an amorous and euphoric state, at least, it does for you Granger."

Hermione held her head high confidently and Draco was his usual stoic self, leaving everyone guessing as to the inner workings of his head.

"From that, and the information I've been made privy to, I've come to one conclusion."

Theo tried to keep his face as blank as humanly possible, "Draco is in heat."

He wasn't surprised when there was no outward response from his sentinel like friend, he was particularly intrigued by the telltale pink cheeks Hermione was currently sporting.

"I haven't got a time frame, there's no definitive case studies in Amelia's notes. Recordings have lasted anywhere from days to months."

Hermione squeaked, "Months?"

Theo grinned, "It's also entirely possible that when Draco went all vampire on your arse Granger, that he induced similar symptoms in you. This is mostly speculation on my part, what would really help is if I could extract venom directly from the source. Which means you'll have to do more than spit in a dish mate."

Draco looked at Hermione speculatively before returning his gaze to Theo, giving a brief nod.

"Excellent!" Theo exclaimed, standing and summoning a large jar with some sort of white covering stretched tightly over the lip.

Hermione was looking at the jar speculatively when a light seemed to go off behind her eyes, she grinned at Theo brightly, "That’s pretty ingenious of you Theo."

The wizard in question winked before turning to the blonde reclined in his seat in front of him.

"Open wide Draco, and make sure you puncture the skin." Theo held the jar out to Draco.

"How is this supposed to work?" His deep timbre finally breaking it's silence.

Theo explained, "This is how I milk most venomous creatures. They all have sharp fangs or incisors, when the teeth puncture the skin of the jar, it secretes venom. It's an undiluted sample this way."

Draco levelled him with a blank stare, "So you intend to milk me?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll try to write some more before posting any more chapters, drop me a line and give me your thoughts :) xo


	80. Chapter 80

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! How we doing? Sorry I haven't been more regular with my posts, I got a a job, hurray! Or not, I won't bore you with the details, suffice to say, I have to walk 8-10 KM everyday, so it's definitely good for my health. Sort of, I have to get up at the ass crack of dawn to get there on time as it's like an hour's drive away. Ain't life a bitch? Anyways, I'm posting these chapters because I've suddenly had a burst of inspiration and it'll help me to refresh if I go through these now. As always thank you to my faithful reviewers, shout outs to Moonsong78, Frau_Blucher, Motherofbulls and gingersparkle92 who always leave me such lovely words. And to the rest who review on this story, you're words honestly just make my day.
> 
> Peace xo

**HERMIONE**

"He's avoiding me."

"Can you blame him?" Pansy drawled from her place lying across the black lacquered piano in the lounge, her new favourite perch, a lavish present for Blaise from Elenore.

Pansy, Daphne, Hannah and Astoria had accosted Hermione shortly after lunch, it had been over a week since Theo's impromptu reveal that Draco was currently in heat. For the most part he'd been completely hands off and had become even more withdrawn. The few times she had managed to corner him for more than a moment he had been quite formal and kept his hands tucked behind his back. She wasn't sure if this was because he didn't want her touching him, but she couldn't deny that his indifference was definitely beginning to smart. Hermione wasn't even sure if he slept in the same room some nights, if he did, he arrived after she fell asleep and was gone long before she woke.

"Back it up," Daphne cut in, sitting down on the chaise across from Hermione with a heavy glass of red wine. "Theo told you both that Draco was in heat, then all of a sudden he's a ghost?"

Hermione bit her lip, "Not exactly, he's still around, just never _alone_ with me. I'm pretty sure he knows when I fall asleep because he's never there, no matter how late I stay up. Then he's gone by the time I wake up, if the sheets and pillows weren't mussed I wouldn't even know he'd been there."

"Maybe he's just embarrassed?" Astoria offered questioningly.

Pansy snorted and Daphne hid her face in her wine. Hannah sat waiting patiently while Astoria flushed.

"Draco's been an arrogant peacock since we were all in diapers. He has no shame." Pansy said dismissively.

She pulled herself up onto her elbows, scrutinising the witches about the room, "You're all forgetting one _eensy_ little fact."

Hermione remained silent, brow raised, she knew Pansy would have her say regardless of her opinion, Daphne seemed to be of the same mind and was reclined lazily, finishing off the last of her wine before summoning the bottle to pour herself another. Astoria was fidgeting, retreating back into her shell after Pansy's blunt rebuttal and Hannah remained silent, wringing her fingers absently. 

Pansy slithered down off the piano and summoned a wine glass of her own before plucking the bottle From the air beside Daphne and pouring, "Why does an animal, _any_ animal, go into heat?"

Daphne was the first to react choking on her wine, Hannah shot her a concerned look while Astoria pet her back awkwardly and Hermione held Pansy's eyes, when she raised a brow and gave Hermione a pointed look, the colour slowly began draining from her face. Pansy grinned evilly while Hannah's eyes flitted between the two.

"That broom went right over my head, what am I missing?"

Hermione bit her lip, heart hammering away in her chest, taking a deep breathe she looked at Hannah. Daphne and Pansy were cackling evilly leant over one another and Astoria just looked confused.

"I'm _such_ an idiot…" she muttered.

Hannah frowned, "Hermione?"


	81. Chapter 81

**THEO**

"Could I talk to you, please?"

Theo looked up from his tumbler of whiskey, he'd been day dreaming, everyone was off socialising and he had decided to take the opportunity to indulge. Hannah was always on his case to stop drinking, she never pushed though, acutely aware of the similarities of their situations.

Sighing, Theo threw the rest of his glass back before reaching out to pour another.

"What can I help you with Granger?"

Hermione bit her lip, "Since you spoke to Draco and I the other day, he's been distant- more so than usual. I know you're his best friend, I just figured you might be able to help me approach the situation in such a way that I might actually extract some answers."

Theo cocked a brow, "He's not being open with you?"

Hermione bit her lip, "He is, whenever I ask a question he answers. That's just it though, he doesn't really volunteer anything, not unless directly asked or coerced. You've been his friend longer than anyone, what do I do?"

Theo groaned, "Draco was always pretty cocky and arrogant, what kid wouldn't be with a father like Lucius? He idolised him though, the man could do no wrong, except for the dinner parties."

Hermione frowned and he explained, "Back before Hogwarts, Draco and I saw each other mostly at these get togethers, a lot of the old bloods liked to congregate to preen over how superior they are. Needless to say, we were both exposed to some pretty horrorfying shit Granger. One time, they kidnapped a muggle, young guy, sandy blonde hair, brown eyes. He'd been a student on his way home from class, still had his bag, a red leather messenger with his books and papers. They played with him for a while, made him scream and beg. All the while, Draco and I are standing front and centre with a room full of hate mongers watching, expecting us to cheer."

Hermione gasped, "That's disgusting."

"That's the life of a pureblood child Granger, Draco managed to convince himself most of the time, but sometimes, like at those parties, he'd get quiet. It was like he would switch everything off, numb himself to it. I'd have to all but beat him up to snap him out of it."

Hermione blinked back tears and Theo sighed, "My point is, Draco has flipped his switch again."

"I'm not sure I understand your point."

Theo summoned a second tumbler and poured them both a generous amount before taking a sip and holding the glass out to Hermione who accepted it gingerly, sniffing the liquid discreetly before taking a drink.

Theo smirked, leaning on the counter with his elbows, "My _point_ is, if you want to get him to pay attention and respond, you have to push him out of his comfort zone, maybe piss him off a little."

Hermione blinked and Theo clicked his tongue, "Do I really have to spell it out, Granger? He's a walking, talking erection right now, you're a smart girl, if you can't piss him off with that mouth of yours I'm sure you could use it to get his attention some other way."

The firewhiskey in her glass was all over his face before he could blink.

"That's one way to get his attention, yes."

"You're not helping." Hermione growled, placing her glass down.

Theo reached out for his wand sitting on the bench next to a red leather satchel and some text books, he observed Hermione's eyes taking the items in when her attention had been drawn by his hands. He watched silently as she reached out and picked up a muggle text book on biology, looking it over thoroughly before looking back to the bag. She stared at it for a long moment before swinging her gaze back to Theo questioningly.

"We all cope in strange ways Granger." Theo muttered before finishing his drink. 


	82. Chapter 82

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Did you miss me? Hahaha sorry for the long break, WAS working on a farm an hour out of town for a couple of weeks and now I’m working in a bakery! I jumped on that shit as soon as I got the call so now I have more time to write for you again :) I have got the next dozen or so chapters written already so I’m going to give you a few today. Without anymore rambling, read on! And let me know your thoughts!! xo

**DRACO**

By the time he was ready to call it a day, Draco's robes were drenched in sweat after chasing a practise snitch around the pitch for the better part of the afternoon. This had become his routine shortly after Theo's big reveal. He knew Granger hadn't connected the dots quite yet.

Swooping down to the ground on a free fall and bringing his broom up sharply, swinging off and landing hard on his feet, Draco began stalking towards the stands, Alterum trees that Blaise and Adrian had planted and grown to shape the stands and posts for the stadium. The giant base of the stands were naturally hollowed out trees and their interiors expanded to house showers and change rooms for the young fliers. His mother had had a fit the first time they'd trekked mud through the halls after their first mock quidditch game and had demanded that Blaise and Adrian build the change rooms to avoid further mess. Blaise had whined loudly until Elenore shot him with a sharp glare. Elenore could've cared less about the mess as the House Elves had cleaned it up well before the mud had dried, but Narcissa had taken to managing the estate with an iron fist and Elenore, for all her quirks, cared deeply for his mother, and would accommodate her many whims to keep her happy.

That's what life here had become, keeping people happy and oblivious to open wounds. Sighing, Draco began the short trek across the field to the change rooms under the stands when it hit him, the scent of warm honey. His head snapped about until his eyes zeroed in on the witch in question, leant up against one of the stands, dressed in muggle denim pants with a light, black jacket, a purple cotton scarf and enormous red boots.

Gripping his broom at his side and clenching his fists, Draco pushed back the hood of his emerald robes. He came to a stop just a few feet away, levelling her with a serene stare as he tried to breathe through his mouth discreetly.

"Granger."

What had originally been a confident and challenging stare had suddenly become shy, as she wilted silently under his scrutiny, straightening her back before speaking, "You’ve been avoiding me." She said softly, wringing her hands in her scarf.

"I have."

Seemingly regaining her confidence, Hermione shot him a glare, "You should have talked to me. This is as hard for me as it is for you."

Draco rolled his shoulders, then cocking his head, a silent invitation to follow, he turned, stepping between the tall split in the tree’s base, immediately walking over to the lockers lining the far wall. Tapping his wand against one of the lockers, it popped open and he carefully placed his broom inside, then turning, crossing his arms over his chest and levelling Hermione with a blank stare, watching her take in the change rooms with mild fascination before shaking her head and meeting his eyes.

"I guess there's no point in asking if this is the reason you haven't touched me or really talked to me in a week."

Draco remained impassive which made her huff. He smirked slightly at her indignation but it dropped when she glared up at him and stepped into his space.

"You should have talked to me." She whispered, dropping her gaze and staring at his chest.

"You seem to have figured it out fine on your own."

Her eyes flashed angrily as she looked up at him again, voice raised accusingly, "That’s not the point Draco! We're in this together! Whether you like it or not, that means we talk, like civilised people, if you want this to work, you need to show me that you can give me that."

Draco had had enough of her frustration, it was pushing all around him in heavy waves and after avoiding her for so many days his blood was burning hot at her close proximity.

Stepping forward into her space, Draco pressed up against her. He cupped the nape of her neck with fingers tangling in the heavy curls whilst the other rested idly on her hip. He held her stare as he slowly leant into her space, "My apologies."

Hermione bit her lip, bringing her own hand up to caress the side of his neck, shuddering when he began to purr. "We're not done here." She whispered.

Draco leant in a captured her lips in a soft kiss to which Hermione shut her eyes, sighing into his mouth as his arms snaked around her body, pulling at her jacket until it fell to the floor.

His hands came down, unbuttoning her pants purposefully while Hermione slumped up against the locker behind her. He broke away from her mouth to kneel down in front of her, reaching out to quickly pull the laces from her heavy red boots before lifting her legs one at a time behind the knees to removed them from her feet. He quickly divested her of her socks before reaching up to hooking his fingers in the loops on her waist and and yanking down harshly.

Hermione remained silent, shuddering occasionally as he worked her pants and underwear down her legs, pulling them off hurriedly. When he was done he trailed his hands up her sides and Hermione bit her lip, "I'm still mad at you."

Draco smirked, leaning in and rubbing his nose over hers, "I know."

He reached down to begin unbuttoning his robes when Hermione reached out, covering his hands with her own, he looked up and saw her eyeing him with a speculative expression before muttering, "Leave it on."

Draco's smirk widened and he chuckled loudly before Hermione grabbed him by the front of his robes and yanked him down to kiss him hard.

Draco hummed, reaching out to divest her of her shirt, pulling back from Hermione's mouth and panting lightly, he eyed her open shirt, the bra she was wearing was horrendous, all thick cotton and straps covering her completely. Clicking his tongue, Draco reached into his pocket, withdrawing his wand and tapping her bra, making it vanish.

Hermione punched his arm, "I liked that bra!"

Draco scrunched his nose before leaning in and running it up and down her neck in between wet sucking kisses, "It was hideous."

He brought his hand up to yank her scarf away but paused. Leaning back slowly to examine her open white blouse and purple scarf, he brought his wand up and silently gave it a twirl over the scarf before tapping it, watching as the material shrunk and changed colour, morphing into a knotted gryffindor tie.

Hermione looked down at the tie hanging against her sternum and began laughing loudly before looking up at Draco with dancing eyes. "Seriously?"

Draco shrugged, "It’s not like I've never thought about it."

Hermione was grinning widely when he swept back down, pulling her into a teeth clashing kiss.


	83. Chapter 83

**THEO**

"It’s her birthday on Tuesday."

Draco's eyes snapped up from his glass.

Theo smirked, swinging back his drink before pouring another. He had coaxed Draco into the lounge for a drink after he had astonishingly, finished teaching an impromptu potions lesson- at the behest of Hermione, who had bullied everyone, himself included, into a scheduled teaching regime. She had even managed to strong arm Elenore into daily amateur Transfiguration Classes. In a matter of days, Hermione had managed to organise the teaching of the children on the plantation into something resembling an actual education.

"Hannah told me it’s September nineteenth."

Draco frowned.

Theo clapped him on the shoulder, "I doubt Granger’s even noticed, who looks at the date anymore? Plus, she's been working on getting that potion finished every moment she can get."

Draco clenched his jaw briefly, looking into his glass.

"What are you going to do Draco?"

The blonde wizards eyes flickered up, "I suppose I'll have to get her a present."

Theo snorted into his tumbler, "Asshole, her potion will be ready in a matter of days."

Draco stiffened, "She still needs to run her field test."

Theo clicked his tongue, "That still doesn't leave you with much time, what then?"

The blonde stared into the amber liquid of his glass for a long moment, "I'll go with her."

Theo raised a brow, "Surely you can't be that eager to reunite with your father?"

The look Draco shot him was ice cold, "Careful Theo."

Theo raised his hands, "You know it's bound to happen if you go. They're camped out in your bloody house for Merlin's sake!"

Draco stared into his drink, "She'll never forgive me if I bind her, and she won't take no for an answer."

"What about you? You’re in _heat_ , if you lost her right now you’d go mad. We left Britain behind for a reason Draco, escape outdated ideals and hypocracies, you said it yourself..."

Draco clenched his jaw, "That doesn't stop it from seeking us out."

Theo slumped, "When does it end?"

Draco swirled his drink, watching the liquid twirl intently, "It never ends."


	84. Chapter 84

**HERMIONE**

"I need to leave."

Draco looked up from his cauldron, arching a brow.

Hermione inhaled deeply, "I need to go to the nearest apothecary for essence of murtlap and hippogriff feathers, you don’t have any left in your stores and my imbuing potion is almost ready, we'll need to infuse it with explosive receptors immediately once it's been under direct moonlight for three nights if we want it to stick, it needs to be done as soon as it turns a pearlescent dark blue before we soak the stones. Before you say no, hear me out. We can disguise ourselves, I assume we're not in Britain so the nearest wizarding alley wouldn't even be a danger really."

"Are you done?" Draco asked archly.

Hermione huffed, crossing her arms.

"Speak any French?"

Hermione frowned, "A little, my father owns a boat in _Les Riaux_ , he used to take my mother and I sailing in the summers."

Draco examined her closely, "You've never mentioned your parents before."

"There's nothing to say, I obliviated them before the war got bad enough and sent them to Australia. They don't remember me anymore." Hermione finished in a whisper, swallowing the lump in her throat.

"It is reversible."

"I know," she muttered, "I promised myself I wouldn't look for them unless this was all over. If anything happened to them because of who, what I am, I could never forgive myself."

Draco took her hand, rubbing his thumb over the skin, "Never apologise for who you are Granger."

Hermione felt like her heart was trembling with the emotion she felt at his words, unable to deal with the tumultuous feelings, she remained silent and Draco caught her hand, "I'll take you to _Voie de la ménagerie_ tomorrow."

Hermione blanched, "we're near _Marseille_?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey so ‘Voie de la ménagerie’ means ‘Way of the ménagerie’ Les Riaux is a town near Marsielle which are both located in southern France. A bit of a clue as to their location. ;) xo


	85. Chapter 85

**DRACO**

"Can I help master Blaises’ with anything else?" Whispy asked the dark wizard adoringly.

Blaise cleared his throat, "That will be all Whispy, just be back at this spot to pick everyone up in two hours."

The small elf nodded eagerly, clapping her flappy ears before cracking from existence.

The group of young adults stood around appraising each other's transfigured features quietly before a brunette Draco cracked his neck and rounded on a blue eyed Hermione.

"Daphne and Blaise will take you where you need to go, she's familiar with Gustav and usually picks up any supplies we need from him, he's partial to blondes."

The now platinum blonde in question sent Hermione a wink, the two witches along with Draco, Blaise and Theo were standing on the corner of a colourful and cheerful cobblestoned street, witches and wizards walked passed without a second glance and children ran about laughing, it was as if the war that plagued their homeland wasn't happening at all, it seemed the French Magical community held no signs of the savage brutality that currently plagued their neighbours.

"Where are you going?" Hermione demanded.

"Theo and I have several appointments. We'll meet you back here in two hours."

Hermione shot him a puzzled look over her shoulder as she was dragged away by an eager Daphne into the crowds while Blaise followed at a leisurely pace, vanishing amongst the sea of people.

"Why aren't we going with them?" Theo asked.

"I have business and I'm in need of a gift."

Theo shot him a confused look.

"Her birthday." He muttered.

Theo grinned, gesturing to the sea of people, "Lead the way."

Draco clenched his jaw and moved swiftly into the swarm of bodies, Theo trailing after, "I don’t suppose you have anything in mind?"

Draco frowned, "I have something, I need something else."

"Why?"

Draco kept his eyes forward, "I just do."

After several minutes he came to an abrupt stop in the middle of the square, running a frustrated hand through his hair. Theo came to an abrupt stop beside him and swung his gaze around until his eyes eventually landed on a shop with various exotic creatures scattered about the display windows, from tawny owls to puffskeins, clearly French immigration laws on magical creatures were quite lax, the store was covered in black laquered paint, it stood in contrast to the colourful buildings surrounding it, a gold scripted sign hung above the entrance, _Families Fantastiques_.

"How about a familiar?" Theo asked ponderously.

"A _pet?_ "

Theo shrugged, "Why not? She's partial to animals isn't she?"

"She already has a cat." Draco murmured, even as he was strolling closer to the shop front,  curious. A Tinkling bell signalled their entrance as the two wizards stepped inside, turning about the room, both slowly taking in the exotic looking owls and birds, cats and other rarities littered about the magically expanded room.

" _Bonjour!_ " Called a aging blonde witch from the back of the store. Stepping around the counter she appraised the wizards Brightly.

" _Bonjour mademoiselle,_ " Theo said flirtatiously. The woman blushed lightly under the brown haired wizards attention, " _mon ami cherche un cadeau pour son petite amie_."

The woman smiled winningly, speaking in broken English,"You are English, no?"

Theo grinned, "Accent gave us away?"

" _Oui_ ," she winked before biting her lip, "Terrible business is your country, I 'ear it 'as spread to Ireland now too?"

Theo frowned, "We wouldn't know, we fled the continent shortly after the fighting began."

The woman nodded sagely, "It is wise choice, let us talk no more of it." She turned to a silent Draco, who had been eyeing the creatures in the store skeptically, "I am Alita, I will 'elp you find your familiar."

Draco rose a brow, speaking for the first time, "I'm not even sure what I'm looking for."

Alita clucked her tongue, "Nonsense, tell me about your _fille_."

Draco frowned, "She likes cats, had a half kneasal in school, hideous beast."

Alita looked amused, "What else?"

Draco took a moment to formulate a reply, "She likes rain, it reminds her of home, and music, she's always humming different tunes to herself."

Alita smiled brightly, " I 'ave something special for you."

Draco rolled his eyes at the cliched response of the shopkeeper while she gestured that they should follow her to a corner in the shop, leading them to an intricately twisted and leaveless black tree that touched the ceiling, on it sat a flock of white birds, About the size of a small owl, dark golden beaks with long sweeping tails swaying in tandem to the soft lullaby they sung in harmony, their sharp feathers shimmering an electric blue occasionally that almost seemed to crackle.

" _Impondulu_." She said proudly, gesturing to the singing birds.

Draco raised a brow in question and Theo whistled low, stepping forward to reach out his hand before holding it in front of one of the small bird’s talons, waiting for the small creature to hop onto his hand, " _Lightning birds_." He murmured to Draco, shooting him a brief glance before returning his attention to the small songbird perched on his hand.

Draco rounded on the shopkeeper, arching a brow, "I thought these were native to Africa?"

She smiled cheekily, " _Oui_ , I 'ave a cousin that breeds them. These babes are five weeks old, they won't grow much bigger, they love to sing, if you let them outside, their song will bring light rain and beautiful lightning dances, nothing like what a Thunderbird can do, it is but a small cousin, very good at locating postal récipients in bad weather."

Theo held his hand out and the small shimmery white bird flew to Draco's shoulder, crooning a sweet melody quietly in his ear.

Draco listened to the bird sing, mesmerised by its lilting voice until its whimsical song came to an end.

Looking up at Theo, he saw the wizard eyeing him curiously, "It’s definitely a unique gift."

Draco could tell that Theo had become smitten with the small creature, he raised his hand to bring the bird around to his face for closer inspection. It's intelligent electric blue eyes observed him curiously, when it reached down to nip at his fingers Draco brought his other hand up to stroke its downy feathers absently.

Looking back to Alita, he noticed that she had produced a delicate brass cage, holding the door open, she held it out for the Impondulu to swoop onto the small perch inside before closing it gently, she looked back at him with another cheeky grin, "She is a lucky girl, no?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> “mon ami cherche un cadeau pour son petite amie."- My friend is looking for a gift for his girlfriend.
> 
> “Families Fantastiques”- Fantastic Familliars 
> 
> An Impondulu is a small bird native to Africa that in mythology can influence the weather to a degree. I like to think of it as my own fantastic beast. ;) xo
> 
> Let me know your thoughts! I love hearing from my readers :) xo


	86. Chapter 86

**HERMIONE**

By the time Daphne had dragged them through all the stores, moving like a hurricane on a set path, she was exhausted. The two hours Draco had allotted them were almost up and Hermione felt a small pang of sadness that their trip was coming to an end.

She felt guilty, shopping with Daphne and Blaise like they were just two regular witches and a wizard out on a shopping spree. She had made sure they had aquired the potion supplies as quickly as possible so that she would have time to explore, leaving the Plantation was a rare treat amongst the inhabitants apparently and they had drawn straws on who got to go this time around.

"I don't understand why only five of us could come, surely the others would've liked to enjoy a day in civilisation." Hermione said absently as she scanned the titles of the books on the shelf in front of her. Much to her delight, Daphne was a bit of a bibliophile herself, and they both wanted to provide some new reading material for everyone back on the Plantation, and Hermione was determined not to let the children’s education fall to the wayside, that meant text books.

"It's a precautionary measure, we can't know if anyone from Britain could be in France, we're completely isolated. Small groups mean we're less likely to be noticed." Daphne said offhandedly.

Hermione huffed, plucking a bright red book from the shelf, examining the title, _Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them_ , by Newt Scammander.

"He was Theo's great, great uncle you know."

Hermione jumped, looking around to see Daphne had been reading over her shoulder, "Who?" She asked stupidly.

Daphne tapped the cover of the book, "Scammander, his brothers granddaughter was Theo's mother."

Hermione blanched, "Seriously?"

Daphne nodded, "Andorea Nott, née Scammander. She died when Theo was little."

"How?"

She grimaced, "She caught dragon pox when she was pregnant with his baby sister, Angelica died a few days after she was born."

"That's horrible."

Daphne shrugged, "It is what it is. A lot of pureblood women are physically weak or susecptable to illness and die in child birth. Theo suspects inbreeding is to blame."

Hermione bit her lip, "He’s not wrong, interbreeding bloodlines can have various ill effects on children, muggle nobles used to die of weak constitutions for that very reason all the time."

The blonde witch raised a curious brow, "The more you know, huh?"

Just then the doors of the shop swung open and in walked the wizard in question.

"Having fun ladies?"

Daphne plucked the book from Hermione's hands, "Granger was just perusing your uncles work."

"Two greats, barely related. He had a grandson at Hogwarts, Ralf, no- Rolf?"

Hermione frowned, "You don't know your own cousins name?"

Theo gave her an indulgent smile, "My father wasn't exactly considered friendly company Granger, he probably would've locked me in the cellar for trying to befriend a blood traitor, family relation or not."

"There's something seriously wrong with pureblood ideologies." She said irritated.

Daphne and Theo exchanged looks, "Why do you think we escaped to a remote, disillusioned and unplottable island? The weather?" The blonde witch asked, rolling her eyes.

Hermione huffed, "Excuse me for assuming that your families might _actually_ care about you."

"Our families care about carrying on their twisted legacies, nothing more." Daphne said darkly. Blaise who had wondered up at this point hugged her tightly from behind, dropping a kiss to her forehead and swaying them both softly.

Hermione bit her lip and decided to back off, looking around she furrowed her brow, "Where is Draco?"

Theo shrugged, perusing the pages of her book. "Made a stop at the apothecary, said he'd meet us at the disaparation point."

Hermione frowned, "If he needed to stop at the apothecary, why didn't you both just come with us in the first place?"

Theo shrugged again, "Draco does things for his own reasons in his own time."


	87. Chapter 87

**DRACO**

He'd summoned Whispy early to take the bird ahead of them after Alita had explained that they preferred the dark and quiet when sleeping.

_What had he been thinking?_

He'd been thinking that she would love the unique bird equally as much she'd be fascinated by it, feelings he'd become all too familiar with in regards to the beguiling witch. He chose to focus on the fact that he'd almost missed her birthday, her twenty first birthday.

The potion he'd purchased at the apothecary burned in his pocket, it had been the real reason he had chosen to separate himself from the group. Under other circumstances he would have stuck to Granger’s side like glue, as it was he had felt secure in knowing she would be safe with his friends.

After they had returned yesterday Hermione had been hard at work, her potion was finally finished, all she had to do now was wait until the moon was bright and full to let her potion set, only four short days from now.

He hid the Impondulu away in the back of his closet while it seemed to be content to sleep, leaving it with sufficient food and water while he prepared.

His mother had been all too happy to oblige when he'd asked for her assistance in making sure the roof would be emptied of people. It was as close to isolation they would get on the Plantation and he suspected the view would make up for any misgivings she might have about the locale.

Draco felt an odd bubbling in his gut as he swept the halls, following the thread around his heart to the witch that owned it so that he might ask her to accompany him, on a _date_.

Draco rolled his eyes at the term, _date_ , he scoffed. His skin felt stretched and tight, his blood boiled and his severe lack of sleep was fraying at his waking consciousness. The acute physical pain of having avoided her touch felt like knives through his feet with every step he took as he followed her thread. The moment he'd come to realise the cause of his impulses he'd withdrawn completely. He was in no place to be having a child, neither was Granger, regardless of what his nature impressed upon him.

When he found her perusing books idly in the library he stopped and watched her a moment, dressed in a ridiculous baggy white woollen dress that finished a few inches above her knees and equally ridiculous brown socks that ran the length of her visiable legs, she was immersed in her own world, flipping idly through pages. He could feel it cottoning around him like a soft cocoon as he observed her. When she bit her lip as she read over her words, leaning back on a table idly, he tugged at the chord gently.

When her gold eyes snapped to his Draco smirked, jerking his chin in a come hither gesture.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! So it’s been a while, partially because I took some time to get ahead a bit more as the new posts were getting too close for my liking and mostly because of family drama. What can I say? When you have it, you have it. There’s no ifs, ands, or buts about it. Just have to cop it on the chin as it were. Before I continue ranting I’ll finish up with saying I have missed writing and hearing from my readers most of all, honestly your words mean so much to me, on that note, I’m leaving you with a lovely bunch of chapters for your patience and consideration of my first world problems. Peace xo


	88. Chapter 88

**HERMIONE**

She couldn’t deny that she was extremely curious, she was following after Draco who seemed to be striding purposefully in a direction she wasn’t familiar with.

When they began climbing more and more stairs her brow furrowed, they’d gone as high as she’d become aware of, _where were they going?_

The question was answered for her when Draco pushed open a heavy door at the top of the winding stairs, soft light streaming into her direct line of vision as she stepped out onto wide, stoned terrace. Looking about her she gasped, she could see every aspect of the island from this vantage point and it was more than breathetaking.

She saw a thin stream running through the small forest that ended abruptly on a cliff side. She saw that the lines of the colossal stone structure dissappeared below the forest canopy on one side and cropped up once more in a tall stone structure, she saw the white sand beach below a steep cliff side stretching out to bright blue green waters. And she saw flowers, miles of flowers ending in rolling green fields, the circumference of this remote island destination was much larger than she had ever anticipated.

Turning, Hermione noticed that Draco had taken a seat on a stone bench on the other side of the balcony, he seemed to have a presentation of boxes and baskets resting by the seat as he watched her approach quitetly.

Hermione whispered, “What is all of this?”

Slowly, Draco pushed into a standing position, pausing to pluck a small package from the pile by his side before rounding on her, “Happy birthday, Little Lion.”

Her eyes whipped up to his, the shock she felt must have been obvious as he chuckled lightly before picking up her hand and placing the small black wrapped box in her palm.

She stared at the silver ribbon tied around its side in a bow dazedly, “Birthday?”

“It’s September nineteenth.”

Her eyes whipped back up to his face, “ _My_ birthday?”

Draco clicked his tongue, “Yes Granger, the day you were born if you recall correctly?”

Hermione scowled lightly when her eyes shot over his shoulder and she bit her lip, “You got me gifts?”

Draco sighed, picking up her other hand and placing it over the box, silent encouragement to open it.

Hermione stared at the small square package in her hands apprehensively, _what on earth could Draco haven’t gotten her?_

Pulling the ribbon awkwardly, she let it fall before opening the hinged lid of the box, coming face to face with a delicate platinum chain, hanging at its centre was a thin rectangular charm, etched with cursive foreign symbols, it almost reminded her of a wind chime.

Looking back up at Draco and biting her lip Hermione cleared her throat, “Thank you, it’s beautiful, though I’m not sure what it is.”

Reaching out, Draco plucked the chain from its pillow before bring it up and sealing it under her hair, brushing her skin with his fingers as he did.

He stepped back and admired the charm that now sat delicately against her sternum.

“It’s a _vérité_ _charm_ , witches of the old French courts used to wear them, it heats when the wearer is being deceived.”

Hermione brought her hand up to finger the small charm, examining the swirling symbols in fascination, “It’s a lie detector.”

Draco smirked, “Indeed.”

She looked up at him searchingly, “Why would you give this to me?”

He stepped in close, pushing her hair back over her shoulder to admire her new accessory, “I’ve told you Granger, I have nothing to hide from you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> vérité Is French for truth xo


	89. Chapter 89

**HERMIONE**

Hermione clutched the charm around her neck tightly like a life line, she didn’t know why, but just the knowledge she possessed such a tangible receptor of the truth gave her comfort.

“Care to test it out?”

She looked up quickly from the thin platinum charm and into Draco’s eyes, as always their diamond like depths gave nothing away, but the enigmatic quality of Draco’s personality had somehow become familiar and reassuring to her.

“What’s your favourite animal?”

Draco blinked, “Hippogriff.”

Hermione felt the small charm heat against her palm, she looked down at the unchanged metal fascinated before glancing back up at Draco, “What is it really?”

He gave her a small smirk, “Thestral.”

Hermione did a double take, “Thestral?”

She looked down at her new charm to find it hadn’t heated this time. She needed to figure out if he really _was_ telling the truth.

“What’s your mothers name?”

Draco smirked indulgently, “Narcissa.”

Hermione glanced down once more, the charm remained unchanged and she felt an odd twinge in her chest, “Why would a Thestral be your favourite animal?”

Draco shrugged, “Why not? They’re physical manifestations of loss and suffering. They remind us that we’re still alive.”

Hermione felt an odd stirring in her chest when her new charm remained unchanging, “That’s a bit morbid.”

“And what about you Granger?”

“What about me?”

“What’s your favourite animal?”

Hermione bit her lip before answering, “Thunderbirds.”

Draco shot her a sharp searching look and so she explained, “Thunderbirds can create storms, create thunder and lightning with a flap of their wings, North American cultures believe that they were created to fight off demons from the underworld and to punish those with broken morals.”

“You like that they wield power over people?”

Hermione sook her head vigorously, “Not at all, I like that they protect. Not anyone person or creature or thing, they protect the balance of life.”

Draco chuckled, “So your fascination stems in that they are wrathful of wrongdoers. You’re not the pacifist I thought you were.”

“You can only be a pacifist if there is peace.” Hermione countered.

Draco watched her for a long moment before turning towards the pile of items behind him, bending down to pick up a bulkier object than the last before presenting her with what she assumed to be a cage covered in a blackout cover.

“Draco, what is that?”

“Happy birthday, Hermione.”


	90. Chapter 90

**THEO**

“ _Accio bastor”_

“Why are you still so interested in his venom? You already figured out what it was doing.”

Theo moved another magnifying lens over the glass dish in front of him before using the bastor He summoned to add several drops of blood, “I figured out what it was doing to _Granger_. I’ve yet to discover what other properties might be lurking below the surface, especially when introduced to foreign matter.”

Hannah watched perturbed as he continued, dropping Draco’s venom into one glass dish after another whilst scribbling notes and examining the samples beneath his looking glass.

“What are you hoping to find?”

Theo glanced up from his work, frowning in thought, “I don’t know. There’s a cause and effect in just about every structure of the environment. A balance, one thing reacting to another, symbiosis, yin and yang.”

“So you want to use it?”

Theo huffed, “I want to understand, that’s all. Draco’s venom heals Grangers body whilst simultaneously stimulating it, from my studies I’ve found it has the opposite effect on just about everything else I’ve introduced it to. Where Hermione experiences euphoria, others experience agonising pain when infected. Bitten enough, and the pain could probably send a person into cardiac arrest.”

“What does that mean?”

Theo frowned, “Heart failure.”

Hannah went white, “He’s never, you know, bitten you, has he?”

Theo scratched his brow, “Only once, I ran a bit of a fever for a day but when I woke up I felt...good. Like I’d just woken up from a month long beauty sleep.”

It was Hannah’s turn to frown, “When?”

He glanced up from his looking glass thoughtfully, “Probably about a week after you both arrived, you were sequestered away in your room for a while there.”

Hannah blinked, flashes of a dark cell and jeering voices slithered into her brain, she was jolted back to reality when she felt a warm pressure on her forearm, looking down to see Theo had placed his hand around her wrist, “Don’t do it to yourself.”

Hannah smiled weakly, “Am I that transparent?”

Theo took her hand in both of his, running his thumb over her skin, “Only the dead have seen the end of suffering.”


	91. Chapter 91

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey peeps! Been a couple of weeks, I’m trying to get back into a more regular process but it’s dificult. Whoever said writing was easy must have been a prophet. For the most part life is starting to slow down again and that’s the way I like it. Drama aside, there comes a point in time when you just need to say I’m focusing on me, I can’t deal with everyone’s shit anymore and that’s okay. You can’t always be there to fix everything. Okay I’ll stop ranting now and let you get on with it, for those of you who have been asking, your wish is granted ;) A prewarning for those feint of heart, this chapter is allll smut Review! Xoxo

**WARNING SCENES OF A GRAPHIC SEXUAL NATURE ARE IN THIS CHAPTER**

 

**HERMIONE**

Hermione watched the shimmering white bird soar overhead, his whimsical tune fluttered on the breeze as a light cloudless drizzle began to fall about them. The food Draco prepared lay forgotten as she wondered in circles about the rooftop, staring up at the amazing creature above that now belonged to her.

Draco had given her so much already, more than she ever expected of him really, then all in one moment, he had once again completely shifted the axis on her perception of him. Flooding with unnameable emotions, Hermione flung herself at the blonde in a running jump that he navigated smoothly by quickly hooking her legs around his waist and wrapping her arms about his neck before meeting her lips in a furious kiss.

When she pulled out of the lip lock for a desperate breath of air she saw Draco’s eyes flash that mesmerising silver before he dove for her neck, nipping and sucking up the column of her throat as Hermione rolled her head back, giving him better access as he stoked the flames burning in her veins. She gasped when he bit down lightly, worrying the skin between his teeth before guiding them back to the stone bench built into the low railing of the stone roofs structure.

Hermione sighed, nipping Draco’s bottom lip as he sat down heavily, manouvouring her legs around his body. He slid his hands down her thighs before running his fingers up passed her socks, pushing the fluffy material of her dress up around her hips, exposing her white cotton underwear before slipping his hands higher until she had to lift her arms as he pushed the material up over her head before flinging it off to the side. Her bare breasts came into view and Draco watched hungrily as her nipples quickly tightened in the cool air.

Lowering his right hand to the front band of her underwear, Draco gave them a harsh tug, dragging her closer before they vanished from existence.

Hermione pulled back from his hold scowling, “You seriously need to stop doing that, I’m running out of my own underwear.”

Draco smirked, grasping her hips and pushing her down into his pelvis and running his nose up the column of her throat, “Good.”

Hermione bit her lip to hold in her whimper when his fangs suddenly dropped, piercing her neck slightly as he ran his lips over her skin, almost involuntarily her hands flung down, hurriedly unbuckling his belt before tugging impatiently at the buttoned fly of his pants. When she was done, Draco reached out to help her push his pants down his thighs, watching closely as his cock sprang forth, straining towards her pussy.

Hermione reached forward, wrapping her fingers around his hardened length and stroking hesitantly. Draco slumped back into the bench, digging his nails into the curve of her hips.

Hermione’s eyes flickered up to Draco’s face, watching fascinated as he clenched his eyes shut, his mouth in a hard line as he breathed heavily through his nose.

Holding him steady, Hermione raised one hand to his shoulder, flushing red when his eyes snapped open, watching her face closely as she rose up on shaky legs, positioning herself over him and giving a choked whimper as she sunk down around his cock heavily.

Draco’s hands slid up to her waist, grasping firmly and lifting. Hermione mewled, squirming before Draco dropped her back down, squeezing her waist as he pushed her up once more, slowly building up a steady rhythm as he continued bouncing her over and over.

He leant forward, catching her bottom lip between his teeth before lowering his left hand and pinching her clit between his thumb and forefinger. She gasped, hips bucking jerkily as he continued rolling her nub between his fingers. He bit down on her lip at the same time as he shoved her down heavily, pushing her hips into a hard and heavy rhythm, keeping total control of her movements until her walls began to clench at his cock desperately. Her orgasm slammed through her body like a jolt of lightning, physical sensation leaving her senses as she floated briefly in euphoria.

When she came down from her high Hermione rose her hands up shakily to brace herself on Draco’s still clothed chest before pressing forward to pull him into a tongue filled kiss.

Draco wasted no time in hooking his hands under her wool clad thighs before standing, keeping them connected tightly as he turned to face the bench. He pulled out of the kiss roughly, giving her what she could only describe as a playful look, “Trust me?”

Hermione looked about them, biting her lip when she heard the fient sound of her new familiar’s song brushing her ears, it’s light drizzling rain evaporating the moment it touched her hot skin, she was unable to spot him as her attention was diverted to Draco who had begun running his lips up and down her throat whilst purring softly.

“You know I do.”

Draco pulled back, giving her a brief look with flashing silver eyes before dragging her hips back from his own, hissing when the cool air hit his still hardened length.

Hermione whimpered at the loss as she was lowered to her feet, biting her lip confusedly until Draco began nudging her gently towards the stone bench, she flushed brightly in realisation as she was quickly pushed to her knees on the seat, pelvis pressing into the cold stone railing, breasts hanging over the side, her hands had instinctively shot out to brace herself awkwardly at her sides and the feel of Draco’s hands running up and around the skin of her lower half was making her shudder and flush in her exposed position. The heavy socks that still encased her legs leant little warmth as the stones coldness bled into her body.

Suddenly and without warning, Draco grasped her hips tightly and thrust forward. Hermione gasped loudly, choking out a strangled moan when his nails dug into her sides and he pushed into her heavily.

She bit back a grunt on his next thrust, whimpering slightly when she felt her breasts begin to slap against the stone railing below her when Draco increased his rhythm. Suddenly his hands were gone from her waist and she tried to crane her head around to see when she felt his fingers grasping her wrists before quickly bending them behind her back, holding them hostage on the middle of her back with one hand as he returned his right to her waist to help brace her body against his bruising thrusts.

Hermione was gasping with his every pump of his hips, her head swimming with the invasion on her senses as she took in the sights before her. So much green and so much blue, small groups of children were resting under the trees in the distance, avoiding the afternoon sun, oblivious to the naked couple furiously shagging just a short distance away.

Hermione bit her lip to hold in her noises, clenching her eyes shut before yelping suddenly when she felt a hand come crashing down on her right cheek with a harsh slap. She tried to swallow her moans lest they be heard, before flinging her eyes open as the purring vibrations suddenly coming from Draco’s body intensified and unexpectedly flung her once more into the blinding heat of release.

Hermione slumped forward and Draco released his hold on her wrists. Pulling out of her gingerly as he gave her room to stand before reaching out to take her arm and helping her upright as her red face and glazed eyes met his pale irises.

Hermione’s eyes flickered down, “You’re still...”

Draco waved his hand dismissively, “Don’t concern yourself.”

Hermione bit her lip, eyes swinging up and down between his face and his cock before stepping forward and pushing at his chest insistently, “Sit.”

Draco rose a brow before lowering down to the bench behind him, waiting patiently to see where she was taking this.

When she bit her lip and slowly lowered to her knees between his legs his eyes flashed a bright silver once more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Eh?


	92. Chapter 92

**HARRY**

“It’s her birthday.”

Harry’s bloodshot eyes rose to the figure standing in his doorway, it was the early hours of the morning so the house was still dark and quiet.

Ron stood with his arms crossed over his chest, purple bags ever present under his eyes and his hair was rivalling Harry’s with its disarray. He looked a mess.

Harry looked down to the parchment under his hand, resting idly on his desk, “I know.”

Ron stepped into the room hesitantly, stiffly taking a seat on the end of his bed before clearing his throat and whispering hoarsely, “He doesn’t deserve her.”

Harry tugged at his hair anxiously, “That’s not for us to decide.”

There was silence for several moments when Harry heard Ron speak again, his voice was so quiet he almost didn’t catch his words, “why couldn’t it have been me?”

Harry sighed, “You know why.”

Ron’s face grew almost as red as his hair, when he opened his mouth to roar Harry quickly shot a silencing spell, hitting him square in the face, the jolt sent him backwards, flailing before he traightened out, cursing Harry out in silence.

“Ron, you fight like cats and dogs, you always have, Hermione just realised it wouldn’t work between you long term before you did and now you’re fixated on it, like your relationship would eventually make everything go back to the way it was before everything happened, but it won’t. Hermione knows that, it’s about time you did too.”

He flicked his wand at his fuming friend and used his wand to close his door and silence the room, he didn’t need the whole house waking up to Ron’s temper tantrum.

The wizard in question was currently sat heaving, fuming silently as he glared at Harry, “I’m not saying you don’t deserve her Ron, I’m saying it just wasn’t meant to be, not in this world.”

Harry braced himself as Ron grew tall with the hot breathe he sucked in, watching the rage build, only for the blue fire in his eyes to implode, his body sagging as he dropped his head.

“I’m never going to love anyone like I love her, she’s perfect in every way, how can I not want her?”

Harry grimaced, he hadn’t been anticipating Ron’s acceptance, or his misery, “I can’t tell you how you should feel, but nobodies perfect Ron, not even Hermione.”

Before the redhead could form a reply Harry’s bedroom door slammed open with a loud bang and suddenly the chaotic noises of a panicked house Rushed into the room, Harry’s spine stiffened when a huffing Neville and a singed Cho came barreling through the door.

Neville’s panicked blue eyes flung around until they zeroed in on Harry, Cho grabbed ahold of his elbow, unsuccessfully attempting to hold him back as he strode forward, falling to his knees in front of Harry and dropping his head in his hands.

“What’s going on?” Harry asked, a coil of dread slowly winding around his bones.

Cho bit her lip, remaining silent as she blinked back unshed tears, meeting Harry’s eyes briefly before darting her own down to the floor.

Neville heaved a choked sob, fat tears clinging to his lashes as he looked between Harry and Ron, attempting to mouth words but no noise came forth.

Harry shot his eyes to Cho who was still staring determinedly at the floor, “Cho, what happened out there? Where’s Ginny?”

Cho’s face went white as she struggled to maintain eye contact, “She was taken.”


	93. Chapter 93

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, didn’t actually plan on two lemons in one go, but what can you do? ;) review!

**WARNING SCENES OF A GRAPHIC SEXUAL NATURE ARE IN THIS CHAPTER**

 

**DRACO**

Draco held perfectly still as Hermione began caressing him with her soft hands hesitantly, biting her lip as she began stroking up and down his shaft gently.

Draco’s eyes were glued to the image before him, Hermione naked but for those ridiculous socks, hair a wild mess of curls, on her knees between his thighs and hands on his dick, his pants were shoved down around his claves, his still laced heavy boots, wrinkling his pants about his legs.

He still wore his black cable knit sweater but gave it no thought as his hands rested at his sides, clenching tightly, he watched with bated breath as she slowly leant forward, flicking her tongue out to lick his tip almost shyly.

He felt himself twitch in her palm when she leant forward and wrapped her lips around his head in a wet sucking kiss. The air rattled out of his chest as she slowly slid forward until she gagged lightly, quickly pulling back.

Draco was becoming a heated mess as she slowly began bobbing up and down, sliding her hands around the length she couldn’t fit in her mouth.

He gulped, blinking hard, eyes glued to her every movement when she suddenly pulled back further, wrapping her fingers around his base and sliding his rigid cock out of her mouth with a wet sucking _pop_.

Draco was panting lightly and watched hungrily for her next move when she raised her hand slowly to her throat, muttering quietly as a soft blue glow appeared briefly below her palm. She looked him in the eyes and turned a violent shade of red before darting her gaze back to the hardened length between his thighs.

Taking a breath she leant forward, wrapping her lips around his head and slowly pushing down, further and further until Draco’s eyes began to bulge out of his head when he felt her lips sliding even further down around his base, her throat pushing all around him all tight and wet and hot.

An involuntary growl slipped from between his clenched teeth and his hands gave up their fight with restraint as they slid into her wild curls and she hollowed her cheeks, holding him in place with her hands as she slowly slid back, her mouth a heavenly suction of heated bliss around his flesh.

His shock didn’t last long as she slowly slid forward again, repeating the movement. _Where the hell did she learn to do this?_ Draco knew for sure she hadn’t done anything like this with anyone else before, she had assured him of it. His thoughts quickly became a blurr once more as she renewed her bobbing. When she reached down and caressed his balls with one hand gently, rolling them in her palm and tugging lightly, Draco let out an involuntary grunt, a heavy burn building in his gut. The world became a distant memory as his attention was focused on her warm, wet mouth and her honeyed eyes watching him closely for his reactions when the burning in his gut began to spread rapidly.

“ _Hermione_ -“ he bit out before she dipped down low once more, he tugged feebly at her hair but she was unrelenting. Draco’s head dropped back, clenching his eyes shut as white lights shot across his vision and his pulsing flesh erupted in a blissful explosion, his hands unwittingly pushing her mouth in fast, short bobs while his hips flexed up into her mouth. He tugged feebly at the hair tangled between his fingers, shuddering as she swallowed down the last of his release with seeming ease.

His hand dropped from her hair bonelesly as he shuddered through the last of the aftershocks.

Hermione leant back, slipping his cock out of her mouth before tucking him back into his pants and buttoning him up before sitting back on her heels with flushed cheeks, swollen lips and bright eyes.

Draco scrubbed his hands over his face, blinking down at a self satisfied Hermione. Snickering internally, he leant down to pull her up abruptly, swinging her legs around his waist and pulling her into a bruising kiss before pulling back and panting slightly, “That was…Unexpected.”

Hermione flushed, punching him in the arm, “Arse.”

Draco sniggered when suddenly the whoosh of flapping wings breezed across his left side, the tangled couple looked to the left simultaneously to see Hermione’s lightning bird had perched on the railing just a few feet from Draco’s shoulder. Preening it’s sparking tail feathers, one electric blue eye trained on the couple embracing on the bench.

Hermione flushed, reaching her hand out to wandlessly summon her fluffy white dress and pulling it down over her body, all under the watchful scrutiny of the magical creature.

Draco sat back watching the scene lazily as Hermione slowly climbed off of his lap, wandering over to the bird and tentatively reaching out to run her fingers in a gentle caress along his breast feathers.

A small spark danced along her fingers and Hermione giggled, “That tickles.”

Draco became pensive, speaking his thoughts aloud, “It shocked Theo when he did the same thing, it must be able to control its energy output.”

Hermione had offered her forearm out to the glamorous white bird who stepped onto her wrist slowly, clenching his golden talons into the curve of her palm.

“He definitely likes to crackle, little sparks flying along his feathers.” Hermione brightened, “That’s what I’ll call you, what do you think? Is Sparks your name?”

The Impondulu leant down to nibble at her fingers affectionately, cooing softly.

Grinning, the bedraggled witch turned back to Draco who was still reclined lazily in his seat, “Thank you, Draco”

Draco felt the smugness inflate inside his chest and couldn’t help teasing her, “Thank _you,_ Granger, where pray tell did you learn that little blue spell?”

He watched amusedly as the red flush quickly returned to her face.


	94. Chapter 94

**HARRY**

What had become an almost routine mission had shattered into a mess of epic proportions. The house was in a panic, one of their own had been taken alive. Not only had someone been taken, it was their leader, Harry Potter’s girlfriend.

Harry had quickly become panicked and distressed alongside Ron at hearing the news of his loves capture. Death Eaters and Snatchers had been lying in wait at the house of the latest muggleborn to make the list of The Book. They hadn’t been anticipating an ambush, all surveillance of the family had suggested the Death Eater’s ignorance to this particular child’s existence. They had been wrong, horribly wrong.

The Death Eaters had become wise to their games and had quickly surmised a counter move of their own, which had definitely ended in their favour.

When Harry had asked who it was that had caught her, Neville’s face had lost any remaining colour as he rose his watery eyes to Harry’s fearfully.

“Greyback.”

Harry had felt his heart shatter as his eyes filled with images of the werewolf’s mayhem. Countless people, good people, had fallen under his wand and teeth in the past several years.

Before Harry could think to ask anything else, Neville spoke once more, “And Rodolphus.”

Harry froze at this name, Ginny had been the one to kill his wife after all. He felt an acidic burn rising up his throat and he fought back the dry heave that threatened to explode passed his lips.

They had managed to rescue the terrified Muggleborn and her family, but in doing so, had lost the one person that was most precious to Harry in this war stricken world.

Currently faced with Kingsley and McGonnagall in the kitchens, Ron sitting over his right shoulder, surprisingly somber and quiet, he hadn’t spoken a word since the news of his sisters abductin had hit his ears. The rest of the Weasleys had taken up residence in the sitting room, holding vigil for their lost daughter and sister.

“We have to find her.”

“Potter, that is an unreasonable request, we have no idea where miss Weasley is being kept or if she is even alive. It is most likely that she has been tortured for information, we must prepare for the likelihood of an invasion, evacuation plans to Shell Cottage must be put in place before all else.” Mcgonnagal said this not in an unkind tone, but one that left no brook for arguments.

Harry clenched his fists, “Ginny would never divulge our secrets, and her mental wards are excellent. Our priority should be locating and rescuing her!”

Kingsley sighed, rising to his feet, “Minerva is right Harry, it’s too risky. We have more immediate problems that need to be addressed here.”

Harry glared at them, “I won’t leave her behind to whatever fate those monsters have for her, she deserves better than that, even if she _is_ dead- which I don’t believe! Ginny is  _alive!”_

Ron looked up for the first time since he heard the news, watching Harry with a watery, desperate hope.

Harry turned angrily back to the older witch and wizard in front of him who both seemed to be looking at him with a poorly concealed pity.

He grit his teeth, narrowing his eyes, “If you won’t help me find her, then I’ll do it myself.”

Harry turned, about to stride out when a red light suddenly bound him in place before sinking into his skin and fading below the surface, he looked back angrily, demanding loudly, “What did you do?”

Kingsley sighed, “We can’t let you leave Harry, that spell will bind you to the confines of this house, you cannot go outside, I’m sorry but it’s for the best.”

Harry glared angrily before storming up to his room, slamming the door closed with a loud bang before striding over to his desk and sitting down heavily.

Almost unconsciously, he pulled a sheaf of parchment forward, picking up a self-inking quill before scrawling out a message.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well? What are we all thinking??? Review! xoxo


	95. Chapter 95

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for the long wait....hahaha I’ve been reading the reviews you lovely people have left me tonight-it’s 3.30am and I haven’t slept in almost two days. I had insomnia as a teenager, occasionally it pops back up to say hello, all I know is that by tomorrow afternoon I’m probably going to crash and burn. On the plus side, I’m not sleeping right now so that means I’m writing butt loads ;) a few new reviewers mentioned this story’s status as completed, I’m a noob when it comes to the inner workings of this site and didn’t even know that I’d done it. XD in any case, I fixed what I could and added a few more tags, the more people reading means more feedback on my writing and that’s why I’m posting. I’m not nagging, I promise- I write a lot of original fiction too and your feedback helps keep me sharp and widens my perspective on how my audience feels. With that in mind, I’d like to leave a shout out to Saphire Snowflake, your words not only make me grin like a loon, they are genuinely helpful in widening my perspective as a writer :) without any further rambling, read on and enjoy!

**BLAISE**

Blaise was slumped lazily against the bar in the lounge, sipping absently from a colourfully dressed, blue cocktail, watching Theo attempt to play pool without the required stick, instead he was crouched low, squinting his green eyes as he concerntrated hard on his target before shooting off a gold spark in the direction of the white ball, watching with a slowly dropping face as it rolled off to the side of the green velvet, completely off range of his corner pocket target.

“You’ll never get it right, you might as well give up and play the game the way Muggles intended.” Adrian stood off to the side, arms crossed around his stick as he watched Theo’s feeble attempts at altering the game in amusement.

Blaise snickered when Theo shot the blonde a particularly filthy glare and Blaise chuckled, stopping abruptly when he felt a warm heat emnating from his chest, diverting his attention. Blaise frowned, placing his drink on the counter, sitting up before tugging a gold chain from his shirt at the end of which was a small gold coin, holding it in the air before his eyes, he inspected it closely, eyes flitting over the inscription around the rim, watching the previously written dates and numbers form into words.

_In Merlin we trust_

Blaise felt his blood freeze in his veins, that phrase could only mean one thing. Standing quickly, he spoke loudly as he hurriedly strode towards the door, “Forget your games, Lyra has been discovered.”

Both wizards quietened quickly, eyes snapping to their friend, exchanging fearful looks briefly before hurrying out the doors after him.

“Where are we going?” Adrian asked intently.

Blaise kept his eyes forward and his stride purposeful, “To find Draco, the girls too. We need to decide quickly on what to do. Lyra is informed about certain things, couple that with her being a young and beautiful girl, how long do you think she’ll last when they come for her?”

Theo and Adrian shated identical dark expressions as they made their ways through the winding halls until they came to Draco’s bedroom doors.

Blaise rapped his hand against the oak door loudly, waiting impatiently, tapping his foot while the two behind him remained silent.

Blaise huffed, raising his fist to knock again when the door was ripped open, a shirtless, silver eyed and fanged Draco stood in the open door way, sharpened nails digging into the wood as he glared out at the intruders.

“Draco, we need to talk.” Blaise muttered determinedly, holding his stare unflinchingly.

“ _You don’t scare me Draco! And I don’t care what’s going on with your friends! Mine has been taken! I need to help find her and you can’t stop me!”_

Draco’s eyes flashed bright and a low growl built in his chest as his attention swung around to the brunette witch behind him, “The hell I can’t!”

Before any more words could be spoken, the door was slammed in Blaise’s face loudly.


	96. Chapter 96

**HERMIONE**

It was the day after her birthday and she decided she would take the time to relax, she still had another day until her potion was ready to be set under the moonlight and Hermione had decided to take the time while she waited for it to set for some well earned rest. She had been running on fumes lately and it was wearing her down slowly. Now, lounging in the wide set window seat in hers and Draco’s room, garbed in a purple oversized cotton night dress and bright, lime green socks, a heavy book open on her lap, Sparks perched precariously on her outstretched ankle, preening his crackling feathers, sending tiny ticklish jolts up her leg occasionally, she had come to find quickly that it was a form of affection. Draco was currently in his potions lab, teaching some unruly fifteen and sixteen year olds how to brew regenerative potions. She had given a brief transfiguration lesson to the thirteen and fourteen year olds after breakfast and was fast to retreat to the comfort of her room once it was over.

To say she was impressed with how Draco had stepped up to that plate would be an understatement. Once she had procured Draco’s compliance in her education routine for the children of the Plantation he had given the task his undivided attention whenever required.

Sighing, she closed her current book before plucking the next one from her pile. It was the book that Draco had given her what seemed like months ago, but was in actuality a number of days. Deciding it would be worth further reading, she pulled it from the pile.

Hermione frowned when she noticed the sheath of parchment peeking out from between the pages, immediately realising what it was. Her enchanted parchment, magically linked to Harry’s.

Nawing at her bottom lip, she hesitated for a long moment before sighing and opening the book to the marked place, reaching out slowly, she flipped the paper sitting on the page over, taking a breathe before scanning the scattered words written on the parchment.

 

_Hermione, I’m sorry._

 

_  
Hermione talk to me, please._

 

_I’ve been spending time with fleur, trying to understand. I don’t like it, but I get it, I do, please Hermione, come home, bring the Albino fairy if you have to.-_

Here Hermione snorted loudly, grinning as she read on.

 _-Just come back, please. Nothing’s been the same without you._ _It feels weird, writing to you like this. Ron’s moping and pinning is driving me mental, I’m not the only one. He’s actually able to clear a room in less than a minute now. It’s painful to watch, but I think he might be getting the picture, which is what you want right? You want us to understand your perspective. Writing_ _to you like this, it almost feels like writing in a journal, so that kind of makes it easier. I don’t know if I can do this anymore Hermione, Be this symbol of leadership and hope. I know I’ve said it a million times before but you were always there to help me through it, it was almost like you absorbed my insecurity and my pain, you allowed me to feel like I could do it, get through it, be the hero everyone thinks I am. Now the doubt creeps around the edges, it keeps me awake, I don’t know what to do. No one else knows, I haven’t even told Ginny. I just knew that I could tell you, that you would at least try to understand and writing this to you this way, well I guess it makes being completely honest a little easier._

_\- Love Harry_

 

 _Happy birthday Hermione, Malfoy better be treating you right._ _I hope your days are going better than mine, I’ve been confined to headquarters and I’m bored out of my skull. There’s only so many games of exploding snap a guy can be expected to play with toddlers._

Hermione smiled fondly, she missed her games with Victoiré and Teddy.

 

_Ginny’s been taken._

_Hermione if you’re reading this I need your help, they won’t let me out of the fucking house!  I’ve been bound. She was taken outside of Hogsmead, she was on a mission to retrieve a muggleborn and her family when the team was ambushed. Neville says they jumped around the disaparation points to buy time to port everyone to the house when she was hit in the back, he saw her go down before being bound and led away, they disappareted with her. Please, I know she’s alive, I know it, Hermione you’re the only one who can help me get her back now, I know this is a lot to ask, but I’m asking, please, help her._

Hermione was panting lightly and a cold sweat had begun forming on the back of her neck, hands shaking and heart racing, Hermione’s brain was firing off faster than she could comprehend what she was reading. Moving into action before she could even begin to finish processing Harry’s words, she gently moved Sparks to the cushions before taking off, summoning her beaded bag and flying about the room, summoning clothes and supplies as she went.

Unaware that she was no longer alone in her frazzled state, Hermione jumped a foot in the air when she turned around and came face to face with a stoic and unmoving Draco. Arms crossed over his chest, he raised a brow in question.

Hermione huffed, “I need to leave.”

The blonde retained his silent demeanour, and Hermione stomped her foot, “I’m not arguing with you Draco, I’m going! Ginny has been _captured_ _,_  I need to help find her!”

When Draco remained unresponsive Hermione lost her already weak patience, “This is not up for debate! Harry said she was taken outside Hogsmead and no one in The Order is even looking for her! Draco she’s in Hogwarts! She has to be!”

Draco’s quiet baritone finally punctured the air, “Even if she is alive, what makes you think you can save her?”

“Everyone deserves a chance to be saved Draco.”

Draco scoffed, “I didn’t realise Potter’s martyrdom was contagious.”

Hermione growled, “I’m leaving Draco, there’s nothing you can do to stop me.”

She stepped forward to walk passed Draco and something in the air shifted, the humidity and heat rose several degrees and Draco’s eyes flashed their piercing silver. Sparks, who had been perched silently on the window seat eyed them both shrewdly.

Hermione gulped when she saw that the back of Draco’s robes had become a disfigured hump, watching wide eyed, he brought his now sharpened nails up, shredding his shirt and freeing the enormous white wings at his back. The look he threw over his shoulder at the appendages was the closest to anger she had ever seen on him, staring dumbly as he straightened out, closing his eyes and taking a deep breathe. Hermione watched on gobsmacked, jaw hanging open as he was able to retract his wings back below the surface before slowly opening those magnetic silver eyes and levelling her with a scarily blank stare.

Drawing a deep breathe, Hermione straightened her spine and levelled Draco with a glare, before she could open her mouth, there was a knock at the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> did you enjoy my early Christmas present? If you’re lucky I’ll keep posting over the next few days, it really depends on how good I am at time management ;) please review! xo


	97. Chapter 97

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! Sorry for the long wait, I really needed to take a step back from this story as it was driving me absolutely nuts reading and writing the same words over and over. I’m still invested in finishing through to the end so don’t worry! I’ve got like the next fifteen chapters already written, but as some of you may have noticed, my grammar isn’t all that stellar, especially when I’m writing free hand. Anyhoo, I have said in the past that I intend to go back and give this story a proper edit when it’s finished, with that said, I’m going to be extra generous with my chapters today as it’s been over a months since my last update! Shame on me! Shame! Shame! Shame! Perhaps you’ll all be merciful and leave me some love in the comments? X

**DRACO**

Draco was fuming when he rounded on her, ignoring the insistent knocks at the door as he stalked towards her like a jungle cat stalking its prey.

Hermione stood her ground, keeping her breathes even and her back straight as Draco tried to intimidate her into submission with his mere presence.

He slowly stepped forward into her space, examining her face closely, the only sound in the room being the now loud banging knocks and muffled yells coming from the other side of the heavy bedroom door.

“You’re not going anywhere, little lion.”

Hermione glared, crossing her arms and tapping her wand on her arm idly, “You think so?”

Draco’s voice was ice cold, “I know so.”

Hermione was about to bark out her retort when the banging coming from the doors got louder, she could make out Blaise’s voice through the wood now.

_“Draco! Get over your weird Veela shit and get out here! Lyra has been discovered!”_

Looking back to the blonde wizard, Hermione saw a stiffening in his overall demeanour. Almost as if he was tensing under a heavy weight, before she got the chance to examine her observations, Draco rounded on her so fast she felt like her eyes just got whip lash.

Before she could speak, his irises were glowing silver again and she couldn’t help but get lost in their metallic pools.

Draco raised a hand, chucking her chin with his fingers to better hold her stare, his voice a seductive whisper, “ _You don’t really want to leave do you, Hermione?_ ”

She sighed, nuzzling into the warm skin of his fingers cradling her jaw, whispering back sadly, “you know I have to Draco.”

Draco raised his other hand to her hair, pushing the wild curls away from her face, his eyes were almost smouldering in their brightness now, “ _Stay_.”

Hermione bit her lip, looking up at Draco from beneath her lashes as she stepped closer into his space, resting her hands on his sternum as she attempted to get closer still.

“I want to, I really do.” Hermione whined, frustrated, she could feel the moisture building behind her eyes and found herself leaning into Draco more, seeking the comfort of his touch.

He ran a hand over her hair soothingly, he sighed frustratedly, “ _Please Hermione, stay, for me.”_

She whimpered, “I can’t Draco! I can’t, please!” She clutched at his shirt now, pulling him closer as if he would vanish if she didn’t hold on tight enough.

Hermione felt the tears of frustration building behind her eyes break, spilling down her cheeks as Draco watched her with frustrated glowing eyes.

Snarling, he broke whatever influence he was using and rose up to his full height, glaring down at her.

Hermione blinked, her anxiety and guilt fading as she watched him with unseeing eyes.

When clarity returned she narrowed her eyes as fury began bleeding into her veins, before she knew what was happening her hand came up, striking him across the face.

Draco’s teeth and claws had retracted for the most part but his eyes still retained their iridescent quality, now tinged with an icy fury.

Hermione held her ground, heart pounding against her rib cage as her chest heaved with every breath. Draco stood in contrast, a statue of ice, minutes passing by as Blaise continued pounding and yelling through the door.

Hermione straightened her spine, levelling Draco with a look that promised retribution before marching passed his prone form to open the bedroom door.


	98. Chapter 98

**HARRY**

They were all of them sat about the dinning table in his manor. Leaving their disgusting, impure hands all over his furnishings. He sat at the head of the table murmuring quietly to the python currently wrapped tightly about his forearm. His followers spoke quietly in soft murmurs as they awaited the arrival of the hunting party.

It was Dagur Knot who interrupted the low buzzing voices with his bellowing voice from somewhere at the other end of the room length table, “It has been three hours My Lord, perhaps we should send out a scouting party.”

Murmurs of agreement rang out about the room, he continued to sit in silence until the voices quieted, his voice slithering out in a foreboding hiss, “Patience.”

As soon as the word was spoken there was a loud clamouring in the halls outside the dinning room just before the doors flew open and a gleeful Rabastian Lestrange followed by his dutiful brother came striding into the room, closely followed by their entourage of recruits from their recent mission.

He ran a skeletal finger in a gentle caress over his pets head before speaking quietly, “And?”

Rabastian fell to his knees, “My lord we did not apprehend the Mudblood and her filthy kin, but we were able to retrieve something much better.”

He rose a brow, “Oh? What have you brought to appease your failure?”

Rabastian flinched before rising quickly and elbowing his silent brother, Rodolphus quickly jumped into action and turned to the men gathered behind them, they slowly parted when rodolphus raised his wand, floating an unconscious form slowly to the forefront of the crowd, leaving them hanging high in the air, at the end of the table for his viewing pleasure.

He stood slowly, lowering his hand to the table and allowing the small black snake to slither from his wrist and across its top, “And what is this?”

Rabastian almost crowed his answer, “It is Potter’s Bloodtraitor Whore! Greyback and I apprehended her attempting to aid the Mudblood and her filthy family, they were jumping around apparition points when managed to stun her.”

His attentioned turned to the floating body, stalking towards the unconscious girl, feeling a sense of victory rush through his veins when he stopped in front of the ragdoll body before reaching out and pushing the flaming hair back from her face, running his finger along her jaw in a caress, not dismilliar to the one he had given his snake, “I believe she’ll be more comfortable in more familiar accomodations.”

He turned his attention back to Rabastian, “You’ve done well Lestrange, unfortunately my own dungeons are..uninhabitatable since Dagur’s blunder in the potions lab. take her to Hogwarts for now, make sure she receives the hospitality befitting of her station before questioning her.

Rabastian grinned before bowing low, “Of course my lord.”

His eyes rolled over the crowd, every body there straightening out and stiffening before stopping his gaze on a hulking form leaning against the door frame, “Fenrir, perhaps you would like to organise the girls questioning, the situation calls for a more…intuitive approach I think.”

Greyback grinned, bowing his head low, “I would be honoured, My Lord.”

He turned, gliding over to the windows reflecting the dim lights scattered about the room, stopping short when he came face to face with a tall skeletal reflection with bone white skin and blood red eyes. Slitted black irises staring back out at him, thin wide lips and pointed teeth lifted into an unnatural grin and a low voice, a rasping hollowed hiss, “I’ll have to give you another glimpse once she’s… settled in.”

Harry woke gasping for breath, he could feel the trails on cold sweat sticking to his skin and his heart racing madly inside his chest, but it was the piercing pain in his forehead that had woken him.

Sitting up, Harry gave a choked sob, he clutched at the wand he’d instinctively reached for under his pillow, shoulders trembling with every shaky breath.

Gritting his teeth, hand tightening on his wand, Harry gave an agonised cry, throwing his arm clutching his wand in the direction of his dresser and watching on in a frenzied state as the wood and contents of the bureau exploded with a deafening bang.  

Ron had managed to put together a small group of volunteers from Shell Cottage that had gone out to track Ginny’s magical aura. They had gotten as far as the Hogwarts gates. Harry had felt a flutter of hope that was quickly snuffed out when suggestions of a rescue mission had been rejected. All pleas to the contrary were dismissed with a stern but gentle pity that infuriated him. Hermione had been his last hope, he couldn’t begin to hope to figure out a counter to the binding spell that had been placed on him, and now Ron as well.

Harry looked about the room blearily, lifting his glasses and rubbing his eyes in exhaustion. It had been almost four days since Ginny’s disappearance and he had yet to hear back from his lost friend since her last message.

Groaning, he pulled himself to a standing position, feeling the bones in his spine pop as he straightened out, sighing miserably, he ran a hand through the unruly mess of hair atop his head before glancing at his desk wearily.

She was his only hope now.

Harry felt his despair crowding in on him once more and swung his eyes to his two way parchment, lying on his desk desperately.

What he hadn’t expected to see were words, just four simple words in a familiar elegant script.

_I’ll find her Harry._

Harry felt his heart lurch as hope reignited in his being, the strain that had been wracking his body for days collapsed around him and he fell to the floor, sobbing loudly and clutching the parchment with four simple words like it was the most precious object in the world.


	99. Chapter 99

**DRACO**

 

“We’ll enter through the potion masters quarters, I still don’t think they realised we’ve been using a staff members entrance, they probably don’t even know it’s there, with all the hidden passages in Hogwarts we still maintain an advantage.”

Draco had resigned himself to the task, once word of Lyra’s circumstance had reached his ears, he knew this was one obligation he could not avoid. Much to his dismay, Hermione insisted upon her involvement. He’d tried to plead that the mission required minimal numbers, in and out but she wouldn’t have any of it. He’d tried arguing, goading and bullying. He’d felt the temptation of his influence like a whisper in his ear, goading him to use his command, it took all of his willpower to deny the impulse. Whatever he was, he would not lower himself to the standards of a rapist, he already felt the guilt creeping up on him after trying to persuade her without an actual command, warring with his instinctual nature to keep her safe, his emotions were a horridly, churning mess, leaving him with the felling of a caged animal.

Hermione clicked her tongue, “Is that wise? They obviously would have figured out a vague entry point by now, they’re not complete idiots.”

Blaise, Adrian, Daphne, Astoria, Pansy, Hannah and Theo watched the two verbally sparring across the bar in the lounge from their perches amidst the couch cushions with mild, strained amusement, there had been a point of contention between the two on every detail of the plan to rescue the captive witches thus far.

Draco raised a brow, “What other choice do we have? The entrance to the whomping willow was destroyed, the passage is caved in. Besides, even if it weren’t, it is almost eight hundred yards to the courtyard, we’d be seen before we ever even made it inside.”

It was Hermione’s turn to raise a brow, “You think you’re the only one with a secret passage into the castle?”

Draco eyed her shrewdly, “By all means, share with the class.”

Hermione glared, “Honeydukes.”

There was silence for a moment, before Theo broke it, “I don’t think sweets are going to make them feel any better, Granger.”

She rolled her eyes, “There’s an entrance to Hogwarts in the cellar, it opens up behind the one eyed witch statue on the second floor.”

There was silence once more before it was Daphne’s turn to speak, “That could work, that’s just a few corridors away from the painting to the kitchens. There’s a door leading to the directly to the dungeons from there, we’d just have to get in without being seen.”

Draco huffed, “What about our escape? We won’t be able to port in Hogsmeade, Honeydukes is in the centre of town.”

Hermione raised her brow, “We can apparate can’t we?”

He breathed out through his nose heavily, “We have no guarantees that we won’t slip some kind of alarm and set off a lockdown, that means no apparating _and_ no porting. We’d be on foot until, if, we can make it to the ward boundary lines.”

Daphne smirked from her perch on the bar, “Scared, Draco?”

Draco’s eyes swung around to the blonde witch, growling lowly, to his left Theo sighed, downing the rest of his drink before speaking, “This is perhaps the riskiest trick we’ve attempted, in the past there has always been a certain amount of surety and discretion which gave an impression of assurance, regardless we were always making a gamble.”

He let the statement sit a moment before continuing, “And if I’m not mistaken, when one door closes, there’s always a chimney just begging to be opened.”

Blaise sighed dramatically, “What are you getting at Theo?”

Theo looked at Hermione with a sly expression, “You went to all that trouble to bring that floo powder back Granger, and you didn’t even use it.”

Hermione’s brows shot up, “Theo, you are without a doubt, a genius.”

Theo bowed dramatically, one arm extended, rising slowly with dancing green eyes.

 


	100. Chapter 100

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CHAPTER 100!!! gah, I know my chapters are tiny in comparison to some, but I am a little proud of this. Please, if you care for my sanity or the continuation of this story, leave some love in the comments below! X

**GINNY**

 

Her head felt like cotton candy and her vision swam as she opened her eyes. Her entire body throbbed something fierce and the cold stone beneath her hardly helped any.

Wincing when she touched her forehead and brought her fingers down to see the half dried blood coating her fingers.

It was then she noticed the cuffs. Iron cuffs clapped tightly around her wrists. She ran her fingers over the metal distractedly when she heard a voice over her shoulder, “I wouldn’t bother with that if I were you.”

Ginny’s head snapped around in search of the voice and came face to face with a very young girl, probably around sixteen years old. She had a flawless complexion that was smeared with a layer of dirt and grime from not having bathed in what Ginny guessed would’ve been days, she had the oddest shade of amber eyes and her silvery hair fell in artful finger waves that hardly seemed out of place, Ginny felt a stab of envy before being pulled back to reality by the girls wind chime voice, “You still there red?”

Ginny blinked, “Where am I?”

The girl huffed impatiently, “As we’ve already discussed, we’re in the Hogwarts dungeons.”

Ginny frowned, “And who are you? How did I get in here?”

The young witch rolled her eyes and Ginny couldn’t help but notice her Slytherin robes, “They really did a number on you before they brought you down here, huh?”

Ginny blinked.

The girl frowned, “I’m Lyra, Lyra Selwyn.”

Ginny flinched, Lyra wTching her curiously, “that’s the third time I’ve told you my name and the third time you’ve flinched, do you happen to know a relative of mine?”

Ginny went white, tugging at her cuffs feebly, Lyra sighed, “They won’t come off, only the wizard who put them on can take them off. You’re a slave to their will, whether you like it or not.”

At this, Lyra raised her own chained wrists up for her to see, giving them a shake, only to see that they didn’t move an inch. Ginny gulped, “You said third time you’ve told me, Have I been obliviated then?”

Lyra pursed her lips, tilting her head as she looked her over, “Can’t say for sure, I’d say no. Probably just concussed from all the torture, also Greyback did quite a number on you when he cracked your head open.” She pointed and Ginny instantly knew she meant the bloodied gash on her forehead she’d found upon wakening.

Ginny went white, her heart rate picking up speed at an alarming rate, “Greyback?” She whispered.

Lyra frowned, “Try not to think about it too much Red.”

”How long have I been down here?”

”Two days.”

Ginny blinked, wracking her brain and concentrating hard, how could she not remember the last two days? She remembered being stunned and captured and then...nothing. Just this cell, and a young Slytherin witch claiming tha this was not this first time she had woken up this way. She bit her lip, a cold chill of dread creeping up her spine as she began to contemplate just what it was tha could’ve happened to her in those passed two days of captivity.

Ginny didn’t notice when the Slytherin girl’s eyes trailed off to the left, over her shoulder, closer to the center of her cell. Staring at a bloody scrap of blue cotton, ripped and discarded on the floor.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things are getting pretty dark for Ginny...


	101. Chapter 101

**LYRA**

She rolled to her side, wincing at the sharp jolt of pain it sent through her ribs, “So you’re like a catfish?”

Lyra raised a brow from her place leant against the bars in the corner connecting their cells, she somehow managed to maintain a dignified air despite being cuffed and imprisioned, sitting in days of dirt and filth in her worn Hogwarts uniform, legs stretched out before her and crossed carelessly at the ankle.

“Are you calling me a slag?”

Ginny huffed out a laugh, half coughing from the dryness in her mouth. “No! I mean, you form a relationship with them so that they trust you, that’s how you do it right? You’re a pretty fifth year, first year boys and girls would be falling over their wands to be your friend.”

Lyra smirked, “While that does help, it’s much simpler than that, I don’t have time to become everyone’s friend. I have a job to do, I slip the kids Veritaserum and a mild love potion laced chocolates, they open up, I find out if they really do want out and we make an unbreakable vow to get them out, to keep them quiet. They think it’s to make them feel better but really it’s an insurance that they won’t blab to the professors. The kids that don’t want to leave, I just _obliviate_  and send on their merry way.”

Ginny blinked, “That’s actually pretty brilliant.”

Lyra shrugged, “Its my job.”

Ginny narrowed her eyes, “And where do you send them? After, I mean?”

Lyra smirked, “You don’t really expect an answer to that now, do you?”

Ginny sighed, “It was worth a shot.”

Lyra felt a heat begin to emanate from her chest and her casual demeanour shifted ever so slightly as she reached into her shirt to pull the chain from its depths, when the coin hanging from its end slipped free she brought it up to her eyes.

  
_Draco dormiens nunquam titillandus_

The blonde witch let forth a visible sigh, her entire body seemingly melting into the floor with relief.

“What’s going on?” Ginny asked, she had been watching the blonde closely the entire time.

Lyra’s amber eyes fluttered to Ginny, “The cavalry is on its way.”

“What are you talking about?”

Lyra unwound the chain from about her neck and held the coin out for Ginny to see. The redhead dragged herself across the floor of her cell to peer closer at the gold piece, staring gently until her eyes found the inscription written around the edges.

“I don’t understand.”

Lyra put the chain back around her neck and clutched the coin tightly, “You don’t have to, all you need to know is that my people are coming.”

Before Ginny could enquire further, the door at the top of the stairs rattled open with a harsh screech. The sound of heavy boots clumping lazily down the stairs echoed about the room. The girls shared an anxious look, while both were afraid, Lyra was the daughter of a Death Eater, until her father came to divulge the true extent of her crimes on her behalf, she would remain relatively untouched. Thus, whoever it was, was coming for Ginny.

Lyra calmed herself as much as she could, given the circumstances, whatever cruelty they were about to inflict on the young witch was out of her hands.

When the footsteps grew closer and a familiar stench reached her nose Lyra stiffened, looking at Ginny from the corner of her eye, she knew the witch hadn’t figured out who her visitor was just yet.

When the figure began to whistle as he reached the foot of the stairs Lyra saw the colour drain from Ginny’s face as comprehension dawned, Lyra wasn’t sure what she had been able to recall but having witnessed all of it, knew it couldn’t have been good, she was trembling like a leaf by the time he reached the bars to her cage.

Fenrir Greyback stood in front of their cell doors, shirtless but for a tattered looking Death Eaters cloak, he flicked his wand and the doors to Ginny’s cell swung open ominously before clanging loudly against the bars.

“Have you missed me pet?”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those of you not in the know, “Draco dormiens nunquam titillandus”, is Latin for Never tickle a sleeping dragon, it’s also the offical Hogwarts school motto.x


	102. Chapter 102

**HERMIONE**

Hermione stepped out of the floo and into the abandoned storefront of Honeydukes candy store. The shelves had been raided and were bare but for a few empty boxes and jars littered here and there, the rest looked so much like the shrieking shack of her youth that Hermione surrepetously cast her eyes about the doomed building, only relaxing once the differences became clearer and more distinct.

Daphne stepped out of the floo seconds later, looking about the condemned shop with a scrunched up nose. “You’d think they would’ve done something with the place by now.”

Draco and Theo were hunched over a map on the bench in the centre of the store, a rough sketch of the tunnel and surrounding corridors Hermione had drawn up from memory before their departure.

Hermione stepped into the shadows of the boarded up windows and began weaving her wand in intricate patterns, fortifying the building against intrusion and attacks, then casting a confundus on the entryways for good measure, lest they be discovered.

Daphne who had been walking about, inspecting the room, stopped behind the boys shoulders, examining the map they were concentrating so hard on.

“What are those dots?” She asked, tilting her head.

Theo looked up, “Granger created a mobile plotting spell, the dots are people and sentinals moving about the corridors outside the passage entrance.”

Daphne blinked, “Why didn’t _we_ think of that?”

Theo sniggered and Draco remained stoic, eyes running over the figures moving about the surrounding halls and corridors Hermione had drawn from memory with the aid of an old worn copy of Hogwarts A History.

Hermione made her way back to the group, “The building is secure. Even if the location is discovered it will take them at least two hours to break through those wards.”

Draco glanced at her briefly before returning his eyes to the page. Hermione felt a stab of annoyance, Draco hadn’t really acknowledged her presence since it was decided she would be coming, not had he addressed the aggressive tension radiating from her being, still not having resolved his sly attempt to coax her into staying.

Daphne twirled her wand around her fingers, “Looks like this is as good a time as any.”

Theo looked up, “It’s best if we wait till after midnight, there won’t be any students and the patrols will be fewer, making it easier to move around the castle undetected.”

Nobody argued with this statement as they’d all noticed the irregular clumping footsteps outside the walled off shop front.

Theo groaned, popping his neck and stretching his arms out before slipping off his cloak and bunching it up before falling gracelessly to the floor and dropping his head back against the impromptu pillow, “Best get some rest, weve got a few hours yet before we can start heading in.”

Ceremoniously, he pulled a flask from his pocket, not deeming to open his eyes as he unscrewed the lid and brought the rim to his lips, chugging down what Hermione suspected to be firewhiskey without flinching.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> afraid I’m going to have to leave it there for now guys, let me know your thoughts, hate it? Love It? Prosecute my story on the alter of your keyboard!...kindly, please. Xo


	103. Chapter 103

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! So a few of you mentioned how often you’d been checking this story for updates during my siesta and I admit that I felt a little guilty that I made you wait so long, I’ve got the day off today so I figured I’d gift a few more chapters for those faithful reviewers. I won’t nag about feedback anymore, those superstars who already leave such lovely words are the true recipients of this story, I don’t say this to guilt people, I say this because when it comes down to it, I want my story to reach as many readers as it can, so that I can grow as a writer, and we all know when we’re looking for that new fic to read, we sometimes judge it by the feedback it’s recieved, or lack thereof, I know I do. Just sayin’. Without any further whining, enjoy! xo

**LYRA**

Ginny wretched while Greyback stood over her sighing with a dreamy expression. Not paying her heaving any mind as he towered above her beaten and naked figure.

Greyback blinked, returning to reality, taking in the abused witch at his feet disinterestedly before noticing the pretty blonde figure with a sickly pallor in his peripherals sitting through the bars, watching the scene with disgust written in every feature of her face.

He grinned.

“Like what you see princess?”

Lyra’s disgusted expression instensified, attempting to mask her fear, her eyes flickered to the bruised and bleeding redhead at his feet before settling back on his face, meeting his feral gaze bravely, “You disgust me, you filthy halfbreed.”

Greyback grinned widely, showing off his bloodied teeth, “You won’t be saying that when you’ve been sentenced princess, as soon as your father reveals what a traitorous whore you are, we’ll be getting to know each other real well, _very_ soon.”

Lyra stiffened when he stepped around Ginny’s form, licking his lips and bloodying them with his tongue as he stepped over to the bars, slowly dropping onto his haunches and looking her in the eyes, his filthy, wreaking breathe hitting her nose heavily.

“Mark my words, soon as your father finds out his beloved daughter is a bloodtraitor, you’ll be begging to spend time with me princess.”

When he raised one dirty, clawed yellow finger to tuck her loose hair behind her ear Lyra lost her carefully constructed composure and flinched back, Greyback grinned that feral beastial grin before standing and turning, he stepped over to a still heaving Ginny and stroked his fingers through her matted red locks before kissing the top of her head in mockery of affection while she continued gaging on air, “I’ll see you in a few hours pet.”

Throwing a grin over his shoulder to Lyra who had retracted back to her look of disdain before standing and striding from the dungeons.


	104. Chapter 104

**HARRY**

“We’ll begin moving the families to Shell Cottage the day after tomorrow. That will give them sufficient time to pack and prepare for the move. The renovations ares complete and we should be able to house them all with little trouble.” Scrimgeour had arrived early this morning to convene this meeting.

McGonagall, Kingsley, Arthur, Bill and Fleur were amongst the others seated around the table, it had been two days since Hermione’s message, and anxiously waiting for news, Harry had barely slept a wink. Spending hours staring into the parchment, willing new words to appear on the page.

Fleur, Who was there to represent the families they spoke of, as she had taken over the day to day care of the children in Grimauld Place, was the first to give input, “Some of those with children still wish to train and fight, a lot also participate in missions, we should give out an offer to those who wish to take it first instead of moving them all out like cattle.”

Arthur nodded in agreement, hands wrapped tightly around the coffe mug between his hands, Kingsley remained blank faced as he weighed both options and McGonagall retained a stiff air, wrapping her fingers on the table top absently, the only physical sign of her irritation, she and Scrimgeour butted heads often and loudly whenever they were left alone in a room.

“We could do that, but if not enough of them decide to leave we might have to insist, Grimauld Place is a fortress, true, but even a fortress has limited resources and they’re becoming stretched too thin.”

Kingsley spoke for the first time, “Perhaps we should enforce that the Muggleborns and their families who have chosen to remain be sent, they’ll be able to help with the day to day and you’ve several witches and wizards who would be able to help in their education. Ollivander resides there, he would be better able to make a wand for a witch or wizard he knows, rather than strangers he’s never met.”

A general murmur of ascent went around the table and Harry grit his teeth, mind firmly on the parchment currently lying across his bedcovers.

Scrimgeour stood, “Well now that’s sorted, I’ve a few items I need to discuss with Hagrid before I take my leave, where is he?”

Arthur pointed up, “On the roof, he’s set up a tent amongst the crops, says he feels too crowded in here with everyone else.”

Scrimgeour snorted, “The man can barely fit through a doorway, of course he feels crowded.”

He turned to Harry, “I almost forgot, what news on Miss Granger?”

 _I bet you did._ Harry bounced his knee under the table impatiently, raising his head to stare them all down unflinchingly, “Last she wrote, she was going to try to rescue Ginny.”

He heard several gasps at this declaration, it was the first time he’d mentioned it to anyone, aside from Ron that is, which Harry didn’t really count as the red headed wizard was the closest thing, other than Hermione, he had to family in this world.

Arthur was the first to react, stepping forward with tears in his sunken and aged eyes, Harry suddenly felt horribly guilty for not realizing how much pain her parents would be in, especially Molly, who now Harry realised, swallowing the heavy pit in his throat, he hadn’t seen since her disappearance, the pain of losing her youngest and only daughter would be a devestating blow to the old matronly woman. Especially after Fred’s traumatising loss at the battle of Hogwarts, which Harry suspected she still hadn’t fully accepted.

Reaching out, the middle aged man who seemed to be aging noticeably with every passing day, brought his hand to Harry’s shoulder shakily, gripping tight as he looked Harry in the eyes, tears on the verge of spilling out, his voice a raspy croak, “Harry, I-“

Lost for words, Arthur let forth a heavy sob, his tears falling down his face in rivulets, he pulled Harry forward and hugged him tightly, sobbing into his shoulder as he clutched onto him like he was his only life line within sight.


	105. Chapter 105

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Eh guys, so I was reading through my new chapters and realised I’d completely missed one! How blonde am I... A few of you might be wondering just how it is that Hermione made it into Hogwarts in the first place...I’ve gone back and corrected the error and I’ve added an extra for my failure at life.

**DRACO**

  
“The lip of the entrance should be just after this bend.” Draco murmured from his crouched position over the map. Leading the way through the cramped stone passage that seemed to be getting tighter the closer they got to the castle.

  
“Don’t worry, there should be a slightly larger chamber at the foot of the entrance, from memory it opens from a narrow slide in the witches hump.” Hermione supplied behind him.

True to her word, fifteen minutes later the bend came to a halt, the passage was now so low Draco had to duck down low to fit through, until he stood in a stone chamber that could easily hold ten adult wizards.

One by one, Hermione, Theo and Daphne crept out from the passage in the wall that Draco wouldn’t be able to see if they hadn’t been coming out of it.

Standing in a circle, they began planning

“Those dots are blurry Granger, how come they’re different from the rest?” Theo asked, taking a swig from his flask.

Hermione sighed, “They’re likely not human, at least I don’t think so. They could be Ghosts…or Dementors. There’s really no way to tell.”

Daphne huffed, “We’re going to have to look, it’s the only way.”

Draco shot her a sharp look, “We won’t be giving away our position, we’ll wait them out.”

  
It was Hermione’s turn to huff, “We can’t afford to wait them out Draco, every moment we stay here is another moment we might be discovered, we have no way of knowing if others are going to come this way when they leave, as far as we know this is the best chance we’re going to have.”

Draco glared, “And just how do you expect to get up there undetected?”

“I can do it.” She insisted stubbornly.

Just then they noticed several dots walking in the direction of the passage.

“You see? We need to go and we need to go now.”

Hermione marched over to the hidden passages entrance reaching out to tap her wand three times against the stone door, stepping back to watch the stone slide into the wall to reveal a narrow tunnel.

Before she could make a move Draco gripped her arm tightly, “this isn’t one of your school adventures, this is war. If it comes to it, you aim to kill.”

Hermione pulled her arm from his grasp and opened her mouth to retort when Theo clapped a hand over her mouth before whispering in her ear, “Quiet, the blurs are on the move.”

Hermione rolled her eyes before sticking out her tongue and licking Theo’s palm, sniggering when he cursed under his breath and quickly pulled his hand away to wipe on his pants.

It was Draco’s turn to roll his eyes, if he hadn’t witnessed it’s birth himself he’d think he’d gone mad, but it seemed Theo was able to extract a more immature and playful side of Hermione when prodded, even at the most inconvenient times it seemed.

Daphne stretched her arms, bending back at the waist, “I’ll take a look and see what we’re working with.”

Before anyone could mutter a protest Daphne was pulling herself up along the walls of the slide, milled about the lip of the entrance, all that could be seen of the blonde were her feet balanced on the curved of the tunnel.

It was only seconds later when she was sliding back out, landing gracefully on her feet, a frown marring her face, muttering quietly, “Dementors.”

The group stopp silently around the map, watching closely as the blurred dots slowly moved around the corner.

“We should turn back and head for the potion masters entrance.”

The three of them collectively looked at Draco in surprise, it was unlike him to be unsure.

“We don’t know what we’re dealing with here, this entrance is in an entirely different part of the castle, even disillusioned there’s no guarantees we won’t run into someone, and after my escape they would have increased security.”

Theo pulled his flask out raising it in toast, “Oh ye’ of little faith.”

Unbeknownst to the others, Hermione had begun creeping closer to the entrance, so focused on the map was Draco that if it weren’t for the spike of trepidation he felt running through their thread he would not have noticed that Hermione had begun slowly slinking towards the passage entrance. His eyes snapped up and locked on the brunette witch’s who had already been watching him intently.

She took an involuntary step back when his eyes fixed on her, “I can do this Draco, I can get there, but I can only do it if I’m alone.”

The growl tore up his throat and his eyes flashed before he could comprehend his reaction, “Don’t even think about it Granger, I’ll drag you back out before you clear the entrance.”

She smiled sadly, “I wouldn’t bet on it.”

Draco dropped the map and quickly charged, but before he could reach her, even with his lightning fast reflexes, she had begun to shift and in her place was a small white dove, flying in place for just a moment before swooping and disappearing into the darkened hole.


	106. Chapter 106

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I went through a lot of reviews today and I’ve noticed a lot of questions being asked about a few of the supporting characters. This story was first and foremost written as a dramione, but if you WANT more chapters and stories about the others let me know, it’s definietly something I would love doing for this story if enough people want to read it :) xo

**HERMIONE**

 

Adrenaline spiked her veins as she rose up into the rafters once more, having just entered an empty classroom to quickly shift and disillusion herself before continuing on. As convenient as her Animagus form was, it was also a solid white animal, she couldn’t take the risk of her feathers alerting the castle to her presence prematurely.

  
Wracking her brain, Hermione followed the map laid out in her mind to the tapestry that lead to the kitchens, shifting briefly, she looked around before quickly reaching out to tickle the pear in the forefront of the painting and waiting to turn the handle that appeared in its place. Slipping inside, she quickly shut the door and took to the air once more.

Looking about her, she saw countless elves cleaning and cooking or sleeping in the small cots that lined the far walls. The scene was quite a dreary one that left Hermione feeling heavy in her heart. Refocusing her attention to the task at hand, she scanned the room until she came upon the doors that Daphne had mentioned. Looking for the telltale stones of the dungeons, she quickly swooped down into the arch she surmised to be the correct one before disappearing into the darkness.

  
When she surfaced it was from a hidden alcove by the Slytherin common room entrance. She couldn’t believe her luck in not having run into anyne or thing but still held her breathe as she swooped lower and lower to the ground as the halls became smaller and smaller the further she flew into the dungeons.

When she came upon a door at the end of the map, she pulled up short, flying in place in a frantic flurry of feathers as she strained her ears for any noises, convinced there must be guards within.

Moments later she was proven wrong when two patrolmen seemed to be walking passed her corridor. Frozen in indecision, Hermione maintained her position, praying that these two men would walk on by, she caught the tail end of a sentence as they crept closer still, “-and I don’t give a shit if you like her, we’re not goin’ down there, Greybacks in there with the redhead, probably gettin’ _real_ familiar, no way am I puttin’ myself on that animals radar.”

When the second openned his mouth to protest the first cut him off with a hand slicing through the air in front of him, “Save it. We’re all under instruction not to touch her, that includes Greyback. You can hold hands with her tomorrow.”

As they walked passed, Hermione saw the second guards face, a young gangly man that hadn’t quite grown into his body, with coarse brown hair and eyes staring longingly back at the door Hermione currently hovered above. When a sharp feminine scream broke the silence, he flinched before quickly turning back around.

“Like I said, no way, no how.” The first muttered into the darkness as they disappeared around the bend.

Thinking fast, Hermione transfigured back into her natural form and quickly went about unlocking the door. By all accounts, those wizards had been talking about Ginny, there was no question about it. And if that scream was anything to go by, she felt that same incyness creeping up her spine when she first heard it, quickly throwing all her efforts into unlocking the door, she wasn’t worried about anyone stationed inside anymore, if what those men had said was true, then she was positive Greyback wouldn’t want an audience.


	107. Chapter 107

**DRACO**

Wings had split open the back of his robes so fast he didn’t waste any time before stretching them wide and tucking them close to his back as he made for the hole. Theo and Daphne both tried physically pulling him back but it was no use, he continued forward without breaking stride.

When Theo let go and stepped back, wand aimed at his head, Draco snapped his wing out to clip Theo in the side of the head throwing him into the wall and crumpling to the ground.

He rounded on Daphne but she had already struck, “ _Petrificus Totalis”_

Draco went stiff as a board, his entire body locking up before he began tumbling back, he wanted to flinch when he landed on his wings but was unable to move even an inch.

Theo made his way to his hands and knees cursing under his breathe as he staggered to his feet, “Grangers a fucking Animagus!”

Daphne rolls her eyes, “Thank you, captain obvious.”

He glared daggers at the blonde who stood over the frozen Veela twirling her wand, “Not that I disapprove of your going after Granger, the fact remains, we don’t have the camouflage she has, that means we need to plan a strategy. We still have the map and our wands. We wait for a clear path, we head for the kitchens and then it’s the dungeons from there. But for this to work, you need to calm the fuck down, blink twice if you understand.”

Theo’s groaning was the only thing that could be heard as he patted his pockets, looking for his flask, cursing Draco out under his breathe. Draco meanwhile seethed silently as he held Daphne’s jade stare, when he felt a absolute horror and heartbreak seering through his chest his breathe caught in his throat.

Heart racing wildly, he calmed his raging instincts, breathing slowly as he blinked twice.

Daphne held his eyes a moment longer, “Good.”

Casting a finite, Draco felt his muscles tense in a completely different way as he quickly stood, his glowing silver eyes snapping around to the two standing behind him apprehensively, “We need to go, _now_.”

Daphne held her wand over the map, looking it over quickly before glancing back to Draco’s face, “No time like the present.”

Draco closed his eyes, willing his wings into retreat before striding forward and hoisting himself up through the passage.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> apologies for the mix up, hopefully you’ll forgive my mistake ;) xo


	108. Chapter 108

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, sorry for the long wait, I had wanted to get my chapter updates onto a weekly schedule but I’ve been feeling a bit blocked of late, I’m taking some time today to see what I can wring from my brain, these few chapters were written during my block so I apologise in advance, it does get quite dark here which is why it might have been so difficult for me to write. To everyone who left a review on my last update, you constantly manage to brighten up my day with just a few words, thank you all :)

**WARNING; GRAPHIC DEPICTIONS OF RAPE AND VIOLENCE ARE IN THIS CHAPTER.**

 

**HERMIONE**

 

Creeping down the steps as slowly and silently as possible, Hermione kept her ears and eyes peeled, as she got further into the room she heard a feint but familiar slapping sound amidst jagged growls and grunts and a weak, choked sobbing. Her heart clenched before freezing over, she knew that voice.

  
Stepping closer and loooking down her body down to ensure her disillusionment still held and her movements kept silent and to prevent herself from gagging on the putrid air.

She stepped faster the louder the noises became, she reached the bottom of the stairs and began to tremble as the duality of the icy humid air wafted over her, dark tendrils taking hold and pulling her closer to the cells that lined the walls to the left, when the scene finally came into her view she fought back her reflexive scream of horror and the involuntary urge to heave.

Ginny was facing away, bent at the waist, naked and on her knees as Fenrir Greyback’s rage hulking form pounding into her heavily from behind. Grasping her hips tightly as he bounced her hard and fast against his brutal thrusts.

Hermione felt her heart shatter as she bore witness to her close friends violation and humiliation, temporarily lost in the horror of the sight and the sounds that overwhelmed her senses of her hoarse and weak, agonised cries splintering her heart over and over.

When she felt eyes burning into her, Hermione quickly snapped out of her inner turmoil, eyes flying down her body, her disillusionment charm had faded, she raised her wand, looking around wildly before zeroing in on a blonde teenage girl in a Hogwarts uniform with a Slytherin tie and silky blonde hair.

_She’s Lyra Sellwyn._

Hermione quickly brought her fingers to her lips, widening her eyes for emphasis.

The girl rolled her sharp amber eyes and Hermione bit back her scathing retort, flinching when a harsh slap sounded out through the dungeon, followed by a long moan. Silently Hermione stepped forward, unlocking the girls cage and cocking her head in a beckoning gesture before turning to the bars of Ginny’s cell.

This would require a bit more stealth, she was lucky Greyback hadn’t noticed her yet, so engrossed in his disgusting activities was he that he didn’t even notice when Hermione silently slipped through the door, the gate already surprisingly unlocked.

When he froze mid thrust and sniffed at the air Hermione felt ice freeze in her veins, she quickly and quietly raised her wand, when his head began to turn about and feral green-yellow eyes snapped onto her, an oncoming red light hit him in right the face. Quickly sending another _stupefy_ to his chest for good measure as he dropped heavily to the dirty cement floors.

The pale girl who was still on her knees, shook heavily before suddenly collapsing to the floor.

Hermione rushed forward, heart pounding loudly in her ears as she reached for the bruised and beaten witch, “Ginny! Ginny it’s me! it’s Hermione!”

She twitched at the sound of her name and slowly rolled over, showing no regard for her modesty, Hermione was unable to do anything but stare as the full extent of Greybacks torment was revealed to her, cuts and bruises lined Ginny’s front and sides. Her knees bled from their harsh treatment and her feet were caked in dirt. Her hair was still in its usual tight long braid, but strands had come lose and dirt and debris clung to the hairs. But it was the evidence of her repeated violation splashed randomly across her skin in blood and fluids that made Hermione flinch before she met Ginny’s eyes.

There were tears in her eyes as her chest heaved higher and higher as the emotional damage of her capture finally came bursting forth at the arrival of her friend and saviour.

Ginny flung herself into Hermione’s arms, crying and sobbing as her body shook in pain and relief.

“ _You’re here, you’re here, you’re_ really _here…”_

She had begun chanting the words into Hermione’s ear over and over as she clung onto her desperately.

When Ginny suddenly ripped herself from her arms Hermione blinked, watching in shock as the redhead reared around to face the crumped werewolf on the floor, Pulling herself onto shaky legs, stumbling lightly before striding forward, pulling her foot back and kicking him between his legs several times in succession, screaming loudly with each slam of her foot.

Hermione ran to her friend, circling her arms around her gently, whispering softly in her ear “You’re going to be okay Ginny, you’re safe now, don’t let him break you. Don’t let him make you as hateful as he is.”

Ginny had turned and resumed her desperate hold of Hermione’s body as she cried harder, wailing her pain into her shoulder, Hermione’s heart was shattering all over again, so much so that she didn’t noticed when her wand was quickly snatched from her hand.

Pulling back from Ginny quickly, taking an offensive stance, she saw Lyra had entered the cell, paying them no mind as she turned and stepped over to the unconscious Greyback, in a deathly calm voice she waved Hemione’s wand, “ _Avada Kedavra_.”

Greybacks body jolted briefly as the green spell hit his back, he looked for all intents and purposes, unconscious, simply passed out on the floor. Hermione turned to Lyra wide eyed as the witch walked back over, pushing her wand into her chest, “It’s not about hate or revenge, it’s about survival. I’m not going to let Red or myself spend the rest of our lives looking over our shoulders, waiting for that sick fuck to sniff us out.”

Hermione swallowed, turning quietly and removing her outer robe and covering Ginny who gave her a vacant look before quietly requesting her wand to heal what she could.

Lyra watched to two interact a moment before she turned, stalking back towards the barred doors of her cell and making it a point to close the door behind her, “As entertaining as this has been, you should probably be on your way, I’m expecting company.”

  
Hermione raised a brow and looked at Ginny who explained, “She’s been communicating with someone on the outside, apparently they’re coming to make a jail break for her.”

Hermione rounded on the blonde who had returned to her previous position in her cell, looking back disinterestedly, Hermione smirked, “I’m sure Daphne and Theo would appreciate it if you saved them the effort and just came with me now.”


	109. Chapter 109

**DRACO**

 

He kept his eyes sharp as he looked about the corridor, the familiar stone halls and portraits lining the walls, beneath the glow of the wall sconces he could see several people had woken from their portraits and were crowding around, watching the Slytherins creeping through their hall closely.

“Where is she?” Draco growled to Daphne off to his left, watching the parchment in her hands intently, wand clutched in her teeth.

Theo trailed behind, looking about with his wand raised, open flask in his left, “Well we know where she‘s _going_ , don’t we?”

Draco growled lowly and Daphne rolled her eyes, pulling her wand from her mouth, before she could retort, there was a loud _bang_ several halls away.

Draco’s head snapped in that direction, closing his eyes and breathing calmly.

 _There_.

Draco took off down the hall before Daphne or Theo could say a word, charging forward until he came screeching around a corner, only to come upon a scene that he had not been expecting.

Peeves was snickering gleefully as he threw firecrackers at a white dove, flying frantically around the rafters in the ceiling, Peeves hot on its heels, a small leather, beaded bag clutched in its talons, swinging about wildly.

“Flap, flap, flap little birdie! Peevsey’s gonna make you go _BANG!”_

The poltergeist cackled evilly, lighting another firecracker and pegging it at the current rafter the dove was hiding behind.

Draco snarled loudly and the poltergeist was distracted momentarily, giving the dove the chance to fly to a hiding place behind a suit of armour, further away from Peeves and behind the now raging Veela below, wings spread wide, black claws exploding from his nail bits and a mouth full of teeth barred in rage, glowing silver eyes pinned on the transparent snickering form above. 

“What’s this? An angry, angry Veela!? All for Peevsey??”

The poltergeist grinned and brought his arms over his shoulder, plucking an obnoxiously large gavel shaped hammer from thin air before swooping down, cackling all the while headed straight for the enraged Veela.

He swooped over Draco’s head, cackling merrily as he swung his hammer in a wide arc, Draco easily dodging to the left as a feral snarl ripped out his throat.  

Draco watched closely as Peeves screwed up his ghostly face and blew a wet raspberry before diving back down towards the seething Veela.

He swung his hammer back over his shoulder, taking aim as he zoomed in, but before he could swing, there was a defening _crack_ before the room lit up brightly, quickly falling back into darkness.

Daphne came charging around the corner at that moment, lit wand aimed high as she took in the scene before her.

Draco was growling menacingly down at a smoking and charred looking Peeves who coughed dryly, a lick of smoke puffing from his mouth as he coughed out a groan from his crumpled position.

Several portraits could be heard sniggering as Daphne looked on dumb struck and Draco continued growling lowly at the heap at his feet. At that moment Theo came huffing around the corner, taking in the scene with open mouthed disbelief, pushing Daphne to the side as he did.

“ _Oomph!”_

Daphne growled, glaring at Theo who was still looking on gobsmacked, while this happened unknown to the ones standing in the corridor, the white dove hiding behind the suit of armour flew out, catching the attention Daphne and Theo as she pulled up short, hovering above Theo’s head, dropping the bag in her talons around Theo’s neck before perching gracefully on his head.

Theo blinked, eyes rolling up as he attempted get a glimpse of his new passenger.


	110. Chapter 110

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is as far as I got, I’m slowly making progress, hopefully the flow will come back sooner rather than later. X

**GINNY**

  
“Merlin, how does she carry all this shit around all day?” Lyra complained loudly.

They’d just gotten through the last of the heavy turns and tumbles throwing them about, Ginny had used a protego with Greyback’s wand to shield Lyra and herself from the storm of clutter, books, ink, potions, even a tent, all came hurling at them when their smooth flight had taken a whirl for the worst.

“She’s cast a weightless charm as well as the endless extension, I suppose.” Ginny said breathlessly, clutching to the walls of the bag behind her.

Lyra huffed, blowing a stray curl from her face,“Your friend’s plan is fucking ridiculous! I hardly believe Blaise or Draco would form such a poorly devised rescue. Although, I do admire her innovation.”

Ginny snorted, “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you just gave Hermione a compliment.”

Lyra rolled her eyes, “I’m not without sense or courtesy, Red.”

They were suddenly jostled around, hearing loud angry voices, muffled through their confinement.

Lyra eyed the shrunken entrance above them sceptically, “You think she’s been caught?”

Ginny snorted, “Hermione’s more than capable of taking care of herself, believe me.”

Lyra sighed, reclining back against the lining of the bag and crossing her ankles and her hands across her lap as they seemed to have fallen into a soft rocking motion, “There’s a big difference between book smarts and wand smarts. One is theory the other practise, how confident are you that your friend won’t break under pressure?”

At that exact moment there was a loud _BANG!_  Followed by a feint gleeful chuckle. The girls shared a panicked look of alarm when they began rocking about harder and harder, Ginny sighed loudly, drawing Lyra’s incredulous attention, smirking ruefully as she stared up at the lip of the bag before attaching her hands more firmly to the material walls, “I think you’re about to find out.”

Lyra let out a short, loud scream when they were suddenly thrown into a kamikaze wheel, when they were upright once more, Ginny was breathing steadily through her nose, watching Lyra closely, she had managed to cast a sticking charm on their palms as she heaved for breathe.

“Your friends going to get us killed!” The young witch shrieked

Ginny smiled cheerfully, eyes flat, dark and shiny in contrast, “Wouldn’t that be something to remember?”

Lyra scowled, “You’ve held out for this long Red, don’t start making enqueries to the Janus Thickey Ward on me now.”

Before she could retort they began to float momentarily as they were dropped a short distantance, both girls grunting at the abrupt landing.


	111. Chapter 111

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So it’s been a while! My bad, I’ve had so much trouble getting through the next part of this story. I had written three drafts of the next several chapters and white washed them all before I finally fell back into a rhythm that I was happy with. I also took some time for my original fiction which proved just as difficult, but no fear my muse is slowly trickling back. ;) for all those loyal readers and reviewers out there, these chapters are for you, I didn’t want to post them just yet but it’s been so long since my last update, I couldn’t keep leaving everyone hanging. Although, I’m not sure if you’ll hate me or love me for what comes next ;) xo

**DRACO**

 

The rage simmered beneath his skin in flowing currents as he heaved out several hot, heavy breaths. His eyes snapped around when he saw the small white bird land gracefully on Theo’s head and his rage sputtered when he felt her smug gratification as she dropped the satchel clutched in her talons around a bemused Theo’s neck before perching primly on his head, while Theo’s muddy green eyes swung upwards.

Daphne huffed, putting her hands on her hips, “Not that this hasn’t been fun, but perhaps we should get a move on and retrieve Lyra and the little Weasley, before Peeves decides to alert the entire castle to our presence.”

Draco remained stoic, watching Hermione preening her wings whilst hopping about, dodging Theo’s wonky attempts to pet her.

He turned to Daphne stiffly, “There’s no need.”

She shot him a skeptical look, “Come again?”

Draco rounded back to Theo who was now attempting to poke at his feathered passenger with the tip of his wand, “Grangers already saved us the trouble.”

Theo’s eyes landed on Draco and they both stared at him blankly, “How do you mean?” Daphne asked.

He sneered, “I can hear them in the bag.”

Daphne and Theo both blinked, gazes shifting simultaneously, looking dubiously at the small beaded bag hanging around Theo’s neck, but before either could make a comment there was a shift in the air, alarm bells began sounding loudly in an ear splitting screech throughout the walls.

Before Draco could get a word out, Hermione had taken flight, doing a quick lap around Theo’s head before swooping back down into the dark corridors.

The three Slytherins snappped into action and ran after the white bird furiously, barely making it around the corner in time to see Hermione shifting back into her human form mid flight. 


	112. Chapter 112

**LYRA**

 

“Really, Daphne? You went along with this farce of a rescue?” Lyra asked in a sarcastic tone, running her wand over the creases in her clothes before reaching up and doing the same with her hair.

The group of not quite rebels, stood in a broken circle in the safety of the hidden alcove beneath the witches hump, once the passage had closed the alarms had become muffled, lights had been sent up to the ceiling while the two rescued witches were looked over and treated for signs of serious injury, Ginny currently being the more subdued of the two, sat weakly on the floor, head down starring dazedly at the floor as shock had most definitely set in and Daphne treated as many of her surface injuries as she could manage.

Theo succeeded in a few hasty _scourigify’s_ to Lyra’s person before she reached up and gave a harsh yank to his ear. “That _hurts_ you tosser!”

When a loud growl permeated their ears, all eyes snapped around to Draco and Hermione, the former of which was currently holding enforcer of the aforementioned plan in place by her biceps, glaring down at her with shining silver eyes, Lyra cocked a brow, breaking the tense silence, “Well that’s new.”

Theo smirked, “Haven’t you heard? Draco’s Veela, went and bonded himself to Granger, just now he was demonstrating in the halls, electrified the ectoplasmic snot out of Peeves before we slid back down the creepy witches hole and pulled you two out of Granger’s goodie bag.”

Theo took a swig from his flask and Daphne returned to her task of healing the mute witch on the floor. Lyra stood looking on dumb founded as the odd couple continued their silent battle of wills. Hermione was trying to reach around Draco, attempting to pull out of his hold to go and see to a still silent Ginny, but he kept her in place with his grip and cold, silver glare, Hermione had taken to glaring back just as furiously. They’d abandoned words quickly and seemed to be somehow commincating nonverbally with their eyes.

It was too baffling for Lyra to comprehend.

“ _We need to move Draco!”_ Daphne snapped, grasping Ginny’s hands gently and pulling her to her feet, she was steadier than when they’d first yanked her out of the bag as it seemed exhaustion was finally catching up with her, making her movements and reactions sluggish.

Hermione wrenched her arm from Draco’s grip as soon as his eyes were off her. “I’m _fine_ Draco! We don’t have time for your animal brain crap! We have to go before the alarms start, if they sense our signatures anywhere near the castle they’ll be on us like bloodhounds, use your head!”

“Fair point.” Theo murmured, drinking once more, Lyra rolled her eyes while Daphne strode forward, wand drawn. Draco’s attention was suddenly firmly upon her as he eyed her with calculating gray eyes.

Daphne brought her free hand up and grabbed a fistful of Draco’s robe, pulling him down to look her in the eye, “We’re leaving Draco, _now_. Stow you’re shit and let’s move.”

She held his stare until he nodded imperctively once and she let go, turning and walking over to Ginny, slinging an arm under her shoulder to help her stay upright and marching forward into the darkened passage.

Hermione quickly pushed passed Draco, rushing forward after the two and intercepting Daphne, taking her place as Ginny’s brace, whispering to her quietly while Draco seemed to almost slink after them in prowl.

Lyra turned to an already staring Theo who took a drink before sweeping into a formal bow, “Witches first, lady Sellwyn.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’d like to thank Pandami7319 for coining the phrase “knock the ectoplasmic snot out of Peeves.” That really tickled me and I wanted to throw it in somewhere, so Pandami, this ones for you :) x


	113. Chapter 113

**HARRY**

 

“I’m taking a team over to shell cottage tomorrow, Lavenders got a group of five ready to come out with us, it’ll make tracking her that much easier.” Ron was speeding about his bedroom, taking out clothes and supplies, throwing them haphazardly into a nap sack. All the while Harry sat watching him on the bed with a resigned expression.

“You won’t be able to follow it Ron, we’ve already discussed this, her signature goes straight through the Hogwarts gates, you can’t go back there, I’ve already told you he’s upped security, Dementors patrolling the boundary lines day and night, George has been keeping tabs on the forest and they’re crawling with snatchers.”

Ron slammed his bureau with a loud bang before rounding on Harry, “I know all this Harry, despite what so many of you think, I’m not that stupid.”

Harry pushed to his feet, “Seriously, Ron? Do you really think Ginny would want you getting caught trying to save her? We all love her, _I love her,_ but this isn’t what she would want, you know that.”

Ron sneered, hiking his pack on his shoulder, “We don’t know what she would want harry, she’s not here.”

With that Ron left the room in a flurry of robes, kicking the door open on his way out.

Harry sighed, clenching his hands in his pant legs, he wanted nothing more than to go to Ginny, to be the one to find her and rescue her and to hold her close, to never let her go again. But he couldn’t, she was beyond his reach and it was tearing him apart inside. He hadn’t heard anything new from Hermione since her initial response to his desperate pleas for help, but he had faith. Faith, that despite how horrible things might get, Hermione would be there to put them back together the best she could, and at this point, that was all he could really ask of her.There weren’t any gods he could bargain or plead with, and those who inhabited his house were unswayable. All his hopes rested with Hermione. All he could do was hope, hope beyond his despair as he knew no one would be answering any of his prayers.

Fighting back the sudden stinging behind his eyes, Harry made his way up the hallway and down the stairs, taking in the ragtag team Ron had convinced to accompany him on his mission to rescue his sister. Dean and Michael corner were amongst them, Harry felt his gut wrench and clenched his fists at his sides upon the knowledge that two of her exboyfriends would be undertaking the task. Luna was also amongst those stood around, as was Terry Boot and Katie Bell.

Ron looked up from his conversation with Dean, “Decided to see us off then?”

Harry sighed, giving a short nod, reaching out to hug Ron brief and tight before turning and making his way back up the stairs without a word, heading straight for one of the random doors that lined the corridor.

Harry raised his fist and knocked.


	114. Chapter 114

**ELENORE**

 

“Remember, roll your wrist like so, then give it a polite flick to finish.”

Amelia looked up from her teacup sceptically, “A _polite_ flick? Are we asking our wands for permission?”

Elenore tutted, tapping her glass with her wand and refilling her wine, “Don’t ask questions, just do as you’re told, you little brat.”

Narcissa sighed, looking about the garden, twenty or so fifteen year olds sat in groups of three or four around the tables, each with textbooks open to the same page and a small plain white teacup resting daintily before them.

“What’s the point? When am I ever going to need to turn a teacup into a hedgehog? Short of roasting it on a fire like a savage, I suspect the broken china lining my stomach once the spell wears off would prove problematic.” There were sniggers all round, Amelia had a tendency of mouthing off during her lessons, personally Narcissa thought she just enjoyed what came next a little too much.

Narcissa sighed again, turning the conversation out and wondering over to some weeping bells, aiming to cheer them up.

Elenore stood up from the table abruptly, stepping around silkily and leaning back against the table, sipping from her glass before speaking, “Listen to me brat, the reason you’re given this task is because it is one of the most complex transfiguration spells to be expected at your level. Once you achieve it, mastering others will come a lot more easily. Simply put, you need to run before you can walk.”

“But why a hedgehog?”

Elenore sighed, tipping back the rest of her drink, “I don’t know, why don’t you go write Emeric Switch a letter and ask him?”

Amelia leant back in her chair, “Emeric Switch died in nineteen seventy five.”

Elenore adopted a sarcastically surprised expression, “Did he now? Hmmm, well I guess there’s nothing to be done, now shut your impudent mouth and do your work!”

With that, all eyes flicked back down to their respective tables and everyone resumed their tasks, focusing diligently on their teacups.

Elenore turned and found Narcissa tickling the weeping bells into standing upright, sighing, she tapped her wand to her glass once more and made her way over.

Narcissa was humming a senseless tune when she noticed Elenore’s presence.

“You have to go inside sometime Cissa.”

Narcissa kept her attention firmly on her cheering flowers, Lavender in colour they began to flush with a deep pink the more they were tickled.

It was a softly spoken whisper, but Elenore heard it, “He should have returned by now.”

Elenore took a large drink of her glass, “They would have sent a message to Blaise if they were in any real danger. Theo’s surprisingly resourceful and Daphne is deadlier than any of them, you know this. Hermione is of course experienced in situations of this nature, and she has remained unscathed thus far, don’t be a fool and pretend Draco needs any kind of protection either, he’s a big boy, Cissa.”

Narcissa sighed, keeping her attention firmly on her flowers, humming cheerily as she wriggled her fingers along their petals.

Elenore growled now, “Cissa I will hex you, I swear-“

But was cut off by the loud crack of Whispy’s arrival, she bowed low to each witch, turning to face Narcissa who watched her curiously, stroking a flower absently.

“The masters and misses have returned Mistresses.”

Narcissa beamed widely, standing quickly and smoothing out her skirt before reaching out a delicate hand, “Take me to them, Whispy.”

The elf bowed again, skipping forward and taking hold of her pale hand, taking them away with a loud crack.

Elenore clucked her tongue, a relieved smile tugging at the corners of her lips.

“Nora, what should we do once we’ve accomplished the spell correctly?” It was Amelia’s arrogant drawl, _forever Amelia,_ she thought.

Strolling back to her chair, Elenore smiled sickeningly sweet, “Then practise so that you get better, you’ll never excel in life if you settle for competency.”


	115. Chapter 115

**HARRY**

 

“You lost her?” His voice was a soft deadly Whisper.

The man on his knees cowered before him, bowing low to the ground, on his hands now, “Forgive me, my lord, I was not there, I could not know.”

A slow smirk began to stretch across his lips, “Oh? And how is it that became a possibility?”

The man tremble like a leaf, “Whoever it was, they killed Greyback while he was in-interrogating the Weasley girl, th-they struck him from behind in her cell and escaped, we assume through a hidden passage.”

He became thoughtful, “Do you have any idea who these brave souls were?”

“N-no we do not my lord, but we have identified the craftsmanship of the wand, it is a vine wood, dragon heart string. Most like it is between ten and eleven inches long.”

“So, Harry Potter did not attempt to save his lady love?”

“We did not find any traces of Potter in the castle, we did find traces of some extremely volatile magic several corridors away. It was…too complex to identify, not a regular wizards aura, something...more.”

“Is there anything else you wish to tell me?”

The man fidgeted and he sighed impatiently, how he longed for someone to stand brave and tall, speaking to him without the underlying abject terror, _although_ , he thought, _I would probably end up killing such a person._

“Lyra Selwyn escaped along side the Weasley girl.”

“Tobias’s daughter?”

“Ye-yes my lord.”

He became thoughtful, murmuring to himself, “Most peculiar…”

“There is one more thing, my lord.”

He raised a hairless brow, “Yes?”

He hesitated, “There was a fight in one of the abandoned stores in Hogsmeade, Mulciber is dead and the Weasley puppet is missing.”

His rage exploded out in a wave of magic, bursting out across the room and shattering the walls.

Harry woke up gasping, scar burning and chest pounding with adrenaline, Voldemort hadn’t intended for Harry to see this, he was sure of it, he had been too relaxed, too comfortable, Harry had subconiously slipped right in and witnessed it all.

His heart sang, Ginny had escaped. While it quickly froze over when he realised Hermione’s wand one was the one being described by the nameless Death Eater. She had killed Fenrir Greyback, his head pounded as information flooded his brain in a tidal wave, heart coming to a stop once he caught the dream replaying in his mind.

The man had said ‘Weasley puppet’, there was a traitor amongst his family.


	116. Chapter 116

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Bet you didn’t expect to fear from me again so soon? So I felt pretty crap when I realised how long it had been since my last post, and decided to give you a little preview of what’s coming, some of you might be a little furious with me about where I ended this, sorry in advance! ;)

**HERMIONE**

All of them were stood in a tightly knitted group, remaining silent as possible as they listened to the foot steps walking about above, breathes held as they watched the dust fall from each heavy step of the wizards upstairs.

“There’s nothing here, let’s go and check the perimeter with the others.”

“If there is nothing here then there would be no need for wards, let alone a confundus charm.” Th drawling flat voice of the wandering feet replied.

They could hear the one by the door huff, “Either way, they’re long gone.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure.”

Theo squeezed his eyes shut, reaching into his pocket for his flask and unscrewing it silently, before he could raise it to his lips it was snatched out of his hand by Daphne who took a long pull, shuddering silently through the burn.

Theo scowled, using his sleeve to wipe the lip after snatching it back.

They all froze when they heard the flat voice speaking again, “Make yourself useful and check the cellar.”

“I will _not_ be lorded over by some _disfigured slave!”_

There was no reply and seconds later the indignant wizard huffed before walking towards the cellar door.

Draco took a step forward, turning his head and raising a finger to his lips, he gestured for the group to retreat further into the safety of the shadowy corners behind the dusty, empty crates.

When the trap door opened and a thin trail of light filtered into the darkness Draco slipped into the darkness. Hermione couldn’t place him in the dingy light, but through their connection she knew that he was close by.

They each of them collectively held their breathes as the huffing Death Eater clumped loudly down the stairs, muttering under his breath.

Lifting his wand, a soft _lumos_  lit the room, the man sighed, walking about in an aimless pattern, looking at boxes on the floor lazily before calling up the stairs, “Like I said! No one is here!”

As soon as the words escaped his lips a hand shot out of the darkness behind his head, clamping over his mouth, the wizard dropped his wand and quickly disappeared into the darkness.

Moments later Draco stepped forward, pulling on his sleeves and glancing at the stairs, “I think we can handle the other one.”

Hermione’s heart beat wildly in her chest, it was so loud she was sure the other could hear it. When she couldn’t find the body of the unknown Death Eater amongst the darkness she shuddered, looking around, Daphne and Theo seemed to be the least bothered by Draco’s fatalistic tendencies, Ginny and Lyra on the other hand were several shades paler than a few seconds ago.

“Mulciber, hurry it up!” 


	117. Chapter 117

**HARRY**

“Harry, I know you think what you saw was real but it was just a dream.”

McGonangalls voice was low and soothing, the pinched and worried lines of her face making her look even older than she already did.

Harry huffed, “I know what I saw, it was _real_. We’re still connected and I’m telling you Rabastian Lestrange said that they had a ‘Weasley puppet’ doing a task for them.”

He felt his eyes suddenly begin to sting, “I don’t want to believe it, more than anything, I pray that he’s just trying to manipulate me like he did with Sirius, but sometimes when he’s really calm or overly…emotional, I can see what he sees, hear what he hears. Professor, it was _real_.”

McGonagall touched his shoulder gently, “Harry the Weasleys have already lost so much, this war, it’s taken more than just lives. They would never betray the cause after all they’ve suffered, Not now.”

Harry clenched his fists, glaring at nothing, “I know that. The Weasleys are my family, they always have been. But one of them isn’t, one of them has given up hope, one of them isn’t what they say they are, and I’m not going to stop until I find out who.”

The elderly professor looked worried. “Perhaps we should take this to Kingsley if your so intent on it.”

Harry shook his head furiously, “we can’t, I-I don’t know who we can trust, we’ve been compromised. The fewer who know, the better.”

She frowned, “Have you shared your concerns with Mister Weasley?”

Harry blinked, whispering, “No, how could I? He’ll either be completely devastated or utterly furious with me for even thinking it, let alone voicing it aloud to someone else.”

McGonagall pulled her wand from her sleeve, tapping it against her leg anxiously, “Very well, your legimency skill leaves much to be desired in way of discretion Harry, you’ll have to consult a natural if you have any hope to discover the truth.”

“But there aren’t any natural legimens staying here.”

McGonagall cracked the hint of a smile, “Not in Grimmauld Place, no, but I do believe there is one we could plead your case to residing at shell cottage.”

Harry frowned, he knew of no natural legimens residing within The Order, “Who?”

 


	118. Chapter 118

**DRACO**

Hermione clung to the back of his robe as he slowly crept up the narrow stairs, the others followed in single file, once he reached the entrance Draco turned and looked over his shoulder, bringing a finger to his lips as he brought his wand up over his head, tapping it once and feeling that yolky slickness trail down his body.

Slowly, Draco made his way through the opening of the trap door, looking about with sharp assessing eyes, honing in on a lone figure, stalking by the windows. Black robes, a mask and a drawn hood hid his identity.

Draco cast a quick silencing charm on his feet, slinking forward slowly, until nothing but the strangers sugary aroma filled his nose.

As if suddenly sensing his presence, the figure turned, wand raised, but before a word could slip passed his lips Draco had immobilised him with a silent _petrificus totalis_ and _incarserus_.

Casting a quick _finite incantatem_ on himself, he clicked his fingers twice, turning to the trap door just as Hermione’s head popped out. “All clear?”

Draco gave one sharp nod, “This one is the only other person up here, I can’t smell anyone else nearby.”

Hermione opened her mouth to reply but stopped short, eyes widening, she moved faster than he expected, raising her wand and aiming in his direction.

“ _Stupefy_!”

Draco ducked low, understanding he had almost been jumped when he heard a heavy thump just as an electric purple light shot across the air, right above where his head had been just moments ago.

The group collectively took cover, diving to the floor in all directions as the light crackled and hit the far wall, a perfect round, smoking scorch mark in its place.

They all collectively turned to assess the threat, slumped in a pile of black robes. Cautiously they got to their feet, wands held at the ready.

“Close call. What was that spell?” Theo asked, crossing to the wall to examine the still smouldering mark.

Draco got to his feet, cracking his neck, “Nothing I’ve seen before.”

Lyra stepped forward, pulling Ginny upright, as she leant her up against her shoulder, “Well, Who is it then?.”

They all ignored the slight tremor in Lyra’s voice, curiosity for their attackers identity winning out.

Draco kicked the unconscious wizard onto his back, crouching down low and pushing the unknown man’s hood back. His face was obscured by a silver Death Eaters mask, but his hair was exposed, or what was left of it, an angry pink mottled scar, remnants of a half burned skull peaked out, melted flesh covering the left side of his head while short tufts of red hair cover the right, undamaged side.

Frowning, Draco reached out, grasping ahold of the mask and pulling it away slowly, he blinked, cocking his head, the unknown wizard looking vaguely familiar, the red hair and remaining freckles of the unblemished side of his features instantly reminding him of Weasley.

There was a sudden gasp over his shoulder, making him turn, Ginny rushed to the prone body on the floor by his side, throwing herself down on her knees by his waist, frantic hands trembling violently as she took deep, panicked wracking breathes, reaching out for the unmarried side of the wizards face.

It was her choked wail and trembling, cracked voice murmuring incoherently that drew them all closer, hands running over his face and chest with an almost crazed despair, before a fearfully frail whisper was slipping from her lips, “ _Fred?_ ”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please don’t hate me! I’m sorry for ending it here but it had to be done,I’ve got the next couple of chapters written for the most part but not to my satisfaction for posting. Please, leave a review and let me know if any of you saw this coming?? I can be a bit obvious sometimes hahaha but I am hopeful that I shocked the absolute shit out of all of you. Fred was always a very dear character to me, JK even mentioned in an interview once that she had intended for Hermione to end up with him and not Ron originally. So, in my own fantasy, Fred isn’t as lost to the veil as everyone has thought ;) any ideas as to how??? Xo


	119. Chapter 119

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I’m sorry I left it where I did. Hope you’re not too cross with me, I hadn’t planned on updating just yet but I want to try and get back into a more regular routine. We’re about two thirds of the way through this story and I want it finished damnit! Hahaha I’m going to try for once a week, but we’ll have to see how that goes. :S review! X

**HERMIONE**

Draco was crouched over Fred Weasley’s body, after pushing a hysterical Ginny into Hermione’s arms he’d pulled out his wand and went to work, looking for curses or enchantments, quickly finding the answer after just a few minutes of quiet murmurs and light wand waving whilst the group stood in a loose circle strategically about the room, waiting with bated breathes to see what Draco’s assessment would be.

Draco sat back on his haunches, eyes flickering to Hermione and the hysterical girl in her arms, a trail of tears streaming down her dirt covered face as her shoulders shook with silent sobs.

“He’s under the imperious curse, and something else, dark magic, he’s…tethered to something.”

Ginny sobbed in Hermione’s arms, “ _He died!_ Percy saw him _die!_ Harry _moved his body! Fred died!”_

Theo cleared his throat drawing attention to himself, “Not necessarily, a body can go into shock, slow the heart, even shut down completely to protect itself, or it could simply be that he was dragged back from the veil, with the right wizard and the right wand,” here his eyes flickered to Hermione, “anything is possible, it would have helped that his death had been so recent.”

Ginny threw her furious cobalt stare up to Theo’s face, eyes wild, her grip on Hermione’s arms tightening significantly, “And _how_ would you know? How do you know he’s not some-some _inferi?_ ”

Theo blinked, “I’m quite familiar with the sensation Red, Fred may have been dead or dying from whatever almost killed him, but it seems most like to me his body shut down to slow the process. The wrong person found him and used a spell to bind him. Also, inferior cannot speak.”

Ginny opened her mouth to ask him how when Draco cut her off, “I lived with Death Eaters and The Dark Lord for years, granted, I was in school for almost half of the time, the circumstances didn’t exactly leave me feeling bereft of his presence.”

Ginny swallowed her retort, looking back to her brother she whimpered, “Can you help him?”

Draco gave her an expressionless look that Hermione knew meant he was measuring her, she felt protective of her clearly hysterical friend and shot Draco a glare, his eyes flickered to Hermione’s face briefly before he turned his attention back to Ginny, “I can remove the curse, but I can’t gurantee he’ll be entirely stable, he’s obviously been under for years, probably since the Hogwarts battle.”

Ginny whimpered, clutching harder to Hermione’s arm as tears streamed down her face, “Do it, please, even if he’s crazy, he wouldn’t want this. Never this.”

Draco nodded, turning and waving his wand over Fred’s unconscious body, murmuring under his breathe, it wasn’t long when a bright white light lit the tip of Draco’s wand before trickling down and sinking into Fred’s unconscious chest.

They all stood with bated breathe when a plume of black smoke seemed to errupt from Fred’s body, quickly evaporating into the air, it was several moments before they saw the first signs of consciousness, his fingers twitched infinitesimally when suddenly he threw himself into an upright position, gasping and panting with hands thrown up in front of his face, looking up his breathing excellerated drastically as he took in the blonde crouched by his side and the people stood about him in a semi circle. Draco was the first to speak, “welcome back to the land of the living Weasley.”

Fred scrambled backwards, crab walking until he hit a pile of boxes by the wall, looking about wildly he took in the scene before him, it wasn’t until that moment that Hermione noticed his eye, the half collapsed left side of his face heavily shrouded the veil of his eye, but Hermione felt her blood run cold when she saw the familiar bright blue eyeball in his socket, flying about the room wildly, stopping and spinning with a purpose, without any words she knew in her bones, that had been Madeye Moody’s eye.

Hermione shuddered when she saw the eye spin and stop, locking onto Ginny and herself, as if on command, Fred’s regular eye swung around to fix on his sister and friend, “Ginny? Hermione? What’s going on? Where the hell are we?”

Ginny let out an agonised, gut wrenching sob, scrambling forward on clumsy legs and throwing her arms around the brother she had thought was lost.


	120. Chapter 120

**HARRY**

“Harry, you remember Garrick, I believe.”

After arguing with Kingsley, McGonagall had convinced him to allow her to take Harry to shell cottage, so he might consult the legimens on his dreams.

Harry blinked, “Mister Ollivander?”

The old wizened man smiled, blue eyes glittering like they had all those years ago, when Hagrid had taken him to purchase his first wand, “Mister Potter, it has been some time.”

They were stood in the wooded area behind the house, Ollivander had been examining a tree with crossed arms, hand on his chin as he ran his finger over his lip thoughtfully when they came upon him after consulting with Scrimegor upon their arrival.

“I had no idea you were a legimens, sir.”

He chuckled, “It is one of life’s many suprises, it’s why I prefer working with wands, they speak to me without the noise and trimmings, did you know a white oak like this one, is such a resilient wood it can hold almost any core, hairs, feathers, heart strings.” He gestured to the tall tree to his left, Harry let his eyes trail up the trunk of the tree, zeroing in and stopping on a cluster of seemingly small twigs dangling and swinging from one of the lower branches.

“Are those-?”

“Bowtruckles? Yes, they seem to like the trees in this forest, it certainly helps with picking a wood for carving.”

McGinagall cleared her throat, “Garrick, Harry has some concerns, he has been having…dreams, of you-know-who, he’s convinced there’s someone within the order working alongside him.”

Ollivander smiled sadly, “I’m aware Minerva, I was aware the moment you came outside.” He turned to Harry, “Your concerns are not unfounded Mister Potter, I will do as you require, if it is indeed true, I fear the outcome for us all.”

Just then alarms for the perimeter began blaring, the people scattered about the gardens began to run frantically for the doors while Harry and McGonagall exchanged alarmed looks, whilst Ollivander retained his calm demeanour, continuing to examine the tree, “It appears Mister Weasley has returned.”


	121. Chapter 121

**RON**

“How was _I_ supposed to know Dementors would be patrolling the bloody forest?!” Zacharias exclaimed as they ran through the trees for their lives.

Ron, George, Dean, Michael, Luna and Katie had come on the mission to track Ginny’s signature and bring her home, before they’d even breached the tree line of the forest, a dozen Dementors had appeared in their path, driving them back through the thick of the woods, trailing them in a smooth, patient glide as they headed in the direction of Hogsmeade, when George saw the shrieking shack come into view he whooped, picking up speed as he raced down the slope, the others trailing behind all followed his lead, gaining momentum as they all broke the tree line, sprinting for the apparition point at the other side of the village.

They were half way through the streets when the Dementors came into view, gliding faster now that their prey was getting away.

It was when the alarm began to blare that they truly began to panic as several Death Eaters seemed to bleed out of the surrounding buildings.

They had made it to the main square, dodging curses and hexes, throwing shields over their shoulders without looking as they continued on.

They were just passing Honey Dukes when Ron caught sight of Katie coming to a screeching halt to his left, her face pale and stricken as her eyes began to tear, gaza locked on the shop windows before swinging to the people running ahead. Quickly snapping back to the store front, Ron reached for her hand to pull her back from her seeming panic attack when he heard her terrorfied broken whisper, “ _Fred?_ ”

Ron began scanning her face in shock, neither of them noticing the green light suddenly shooting out from behind until it struck Katie between her shoulders.

Ron’s heart stopped and his eyes widened as he saw Katie freeze, staring off in the same direction with wide glazed eyes as she crumpled to the ground.

Ron felt his heart stutter back to life when he saw the Death Eaters and Dementors closing in around him, throwing a wild eye down to the girl whose arm he still clutched, Ron let go of her still warm hand and threw himself around in a sprint, running for his life after the rest of their group after seeing it snuffed out right before his eyes, with no time to shed a tear or speak a word.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is where I got. Let me know what you think, love it? Hate it? Review! X


	122. Chapter 122

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Long time no see, sorry for such a long wait, I’ve been in the process of moving cross country, lots of driving for job interviews and such. I’m back home now due to some unexpected health issues but never fear, I sat down this morning and wrote out a loose structure of where I’m taking this story and how it will end, just to give myself some guide posts as it’s hard to keep up with all the little details I’ve planted throughout. Writing a story like this is hard, especially when I’m trying to make a mental and emotional connection to each perspective as I write it. So it also occurred to me today that I’ve now been writing this story for over a year which absolutely blew my mind as I expected to be wrapped in less than six months! I’m going to try to make more regular updates as I really do want to see this through to the end. I’ve got a clear image and all I can hope is that it doesn’t take me as long as the wait for A Dream of Spring. :S love to all my loyal readers and I hope you enjoy!

**DRACO**

“ _How are we supposed to get out of here?_ ” Fred hissed, arm wrapped securely around his sister. The sudden shock and joy of finding her long thought lost brother had brought her back to a stable state of lucidity. When the shouts and coloured streams of hexes and curses had filtered their way through the shops walls and windows the small group of renegades had ducked low, scrambling close to the shops walls. They were all of them now lined in a row, pressed tightly against the walls and each other. Ginny was clutching Fred around the middle, eyes flying around the room wildly while Daphne and Lyra were crouched close together on their right. Theo slumped back, adopting a nonchalant pose with legs thrown out on the floor, head thrown back as he chugged from his seemingly never ending flask.

“Theo! Now is not the time to be fucking drinking!” Hermione hissed from the other side, wedged between George and a trembling Draco with glowing silver eyes.

The wizard in question rolled his eyes, wiping his mouth with his sleeve, “If I’m going to fucking die Granger, it’s definitely not going to be fucking sober.”

Daphne turned and answered Fred’s question quietly, “We head for the floo, two at a time. The fireplace is too small to hold us all at once.”

Fred opened his mouth to reply when Draco cut in, “That won’t work, with the alarms going off outside we’d only draw attention to ourselves. I’ve no doubt they’ve put Hogsmeade on lock down.”

Any other bright ideas?” Lyra hissed, scowling at Theo over Daphne’s shoulder.

Draco frowned, left hand slipping up to run down Hermione’s forearm, stopping at her wrist and staring. Bringing her hand down to his lap, he stroked his forefinger down the links of her braclet, looping around until he came to a stop where he’d begun. Slowly the chain seemed to slither around her wrist like a snake, running down to her palm and coiling on the floor Between she and Draco, seemingly gaining length as new links appeared to be growing from between the others. Draco plucked the chain from the floor, wrapping and end around his finger before handing the other end off to Hermione.

Draco whispered, wary of the loud voices arguing outside, “Pass it along.”

Hermione’s eyes brightened with clarity as she passed the chain to Fred, who frowned at the delicate chain suspiciously before passing it down until it had reached Theo at the other side.

Draco raised his voice slightly so all could hear, “Hold on tight and take a breathe.”

They all tightened clammy hands around the thin chain with varying looks of confusion, Daphne seemed to be the only other person who had peiced it together.

Hermione took a deep breathe, looking into Draco’s storm cloud eyes, holding his stare, “ _Portus_.”

The group of crouched witches and wizard let out a collective gasp as they were suddenly and quickly sucked out of existence.


	123. Chapter 123

**HARRY**

George groaned from his slumped position on the couch, the rescue team having just relayed their failed rescue mission to McGonagall and Scrimegor.

“George!You promised me you weren’t hurt!” Angelina hissed, pulling his face down to her level beside him on the couch, looking him over with her eyes, wand held at the ready.

George sighed, “I’m fine Angie, _really_. I woke up with a headache pretty early this morning, it’s just been steadily getting worse. My skull feels like it’s taken a beater bat one too many times.”

Harry sat across from him, turning to a dejected and silent Ron staring into the flickering flames of the fireplace before turning his eyes back to George, “I don’t understand, I thought you were keeping a patrol of the forest.”

George raised his head and glared at Zacharias, perched in the corner. “It was Smith’s watch. When he gave us an all clear for a few hours we decided to risk it.”

Before Zacharias had the chance to defend himself, Ollivander cut in from beside McGonagall, eyes fixed on Ron, “It appears miss Bell is no longer with us.”

Ron flinched, all eyes turning his way, “She stopped running, just stopped in the middle of the street while Death Eaters and Dementors were right behind us. I-“ he gulped, “I tried to snap her out of it, but it was like she was in a trance. Maybe a stray curse caught her or something, I dunno.” Here his eyes flickered towards his brother frowning, George leant forward with elbows braced on both knees and head hanging between his hands.

Harry watched the scene closely, eyes flickering around to the old wandmaker in the back, seeing his glittering eyes seemingly alight, even more so than usual, it was McGonagall who broke the silence, “We best head back to Grimmauld place, I’ll have to inform Katie’s father of her…passing.”

The room remained silent and unmoving as they took this moment of quiet to mourn a friend none had expected to lose.


	124. Chapter 124

**HERMIONE**

“ _Mother, I’m fine!_ ” Draco hissed impatiently.

Hermione bit her lip from her place on the couch beside Ginny as she and Fred were both fed potion after potion by Whispy who ran about the room frantically fussing over the returned and haggard group amongst the few present residents.

Hermione could feel the tightly wound restraint like an echo pullin at her chest and felt her own temper begin to flare now that her fear and panic hhad disolved within the safety of the plantation walls. Ginny and Fred had seemed momentarily awed and stupefied once they’d reached the boundary line, both still seemed to be having trouble coming to terms with their reality, but still clung to each other, hands clasped tightly for support.

Draco swatted his mother’s hands away from his forehead once again where a scorch mark was seared above his left brow. From the way Narcissa was dabbing at it, Hermione figured it was more soot than anything else. She let her face fall into a frown as her eyes locked onto Draco, the conversations around her began to muffle and fade when he lifted his own silvery eyes to hers. She felt a sudden and harsh tug at the chord in her chest- determined not to flinch, Hermione felt her brow furrow further the longer she held his stare. The rage simmering under the surface that she’d held back previously was bleeding into her mind, tingeing every part of her with a simmering fury.

She felt his own rage mix with her own, feeding her own as it was thrumming through their connection, she knew it was time to leave. Turning to Ginny and Fred she cleared her throat to get their attention, looking up she found that they’d already been staring at her intently.

She blushed, twisting her hands in her lap suddenly bashful, “I-I have to go, I’ll be back soon, don’t worry though, you’ll be safe here, no one will hurt you. I promise I’ll be back, I just have a situation that needs seeing to.”

Fred frowned, blue eye spinning around wildly to land on her firmly, “Why?”

Hermione flushed, how to tell her recently returned friends that she was about to go off somewhere private to hex the shit out of her sort of more than a boyfriend who just happened to be an enraged Veela that demanded her attention and would take it, sooner rather than later.

“It’s complicated, Ginny can explain some of it, I’ll tell you both the rest when I get back. Until then, don’t worry about Narcissa, you’ll find out pretty quick she’s a bit…odd.”Hermione bit her tongue looking around to make sure the witch in question hadn’t heard her, “she’s perfectly harmless, it’s Theo and Blaise you’ll have to worry about.”

Fred and Ginny shared alarmed looks, casting overt glances at the Slytherins across the room at the bar.

Hermione sighed, “They won’t hurt you or anything, Blaise will probably needle you with personal questions until he gets a reaction and Theo, just don’t…don’t eat or drink anything Theo offfers you.”

The two red headed siblings shared wide eyed looks, looking back to Hermione who grit her teeth when she felt another harsh tug on the chord in her chest.

“You’ll be fine, Hannah is around here somewhere, she’ll show you around and get you rooms to shower and change.”

Before she could go on, Blaise cut in with a loud voice from across the room behind the bar, standing in front of Daphne and Theo, “Did you seriously shift into a bird and jailbreak those two by yourself, Granger?”

Hermione flushed, the foreign anger in her chest shuddering with rage, Blaise grinned, “Who knew you were such a badass Granger?”

Hermione hurried to her feet, glancing back to the trembling blonde by the door, seemingly ignoring his doting mother who continued dAbington at his dirt covered face and clothes, all the while watching her intently.

Hermione swallowed, she didn’t want this happening here. Rounding on the redheads, she quickly muttered apologies and goodbyes with hurried assurances that she would be back soon. Turning, she approached the doors and Draco who reached out a hand to open the door for her to walk through, ignoring his still fussing mother as he pulled it shut behind him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so I’m only part way through the next chapter but it’s sunday and I have the day off so if you’re lucky I’ll post a few more later tonight, check back in say 8-10 hours. Let me know what you’re thinking x


	125. Chapter 125

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Long time no see, eh? Sorry for the long hiatus, I had some health issues and my cross country move didn’t end up happening because of it. So now I’m back at home, and trust, living in close proximity to my immediate family is...intense at times. I had a hard time writing out the next few chapters, but I persevered and now I’ve got a dozen new chapters just waiting to be uploaded :) I’ll only post a few today as I want the chance to get back into my rhythm now that the muse has returned so I can give you regular updates. And thank you to all you faithful reviewers, your words inspired me to keep going XO
> 
> PS: I’ve had a couple of reviewers mention spelling and grammar errors, in the beginning I was pedantic about fixing these, as I’ve kept going these errors became less important as I just wanted to get the chapters out as fast as possible. I don’t have a beta going over anything so I’ll go back and tidy up the errors at some point, I’m a tad OCD and tend to subconsciously fall into alliteration sometimes because of it, which drives me CRAZY, so...yeah, I’ll make sure it’s tweaked and polished ;) I know how many of you have been waiting for this scene, I hope it’s not disappointing :)

**DRACO**

When she stopped and turned at a set of doors he blinked, watching closely as she pushed the doors open and strode through confidently. He could feel the retribution rushing through his veins, pounding in his ears as he carefully stepped through after her.

  
She rounded on him, standing tall in the centre of his room, the fireplace across the way came to life at her entrance and the stillness was interrupted by the soft crackling of the magical fire burning merrily.

Wand in hand, she glared angrily. Draco took a large step into the room, closing the door behind him gently, he let his silver eyes snap onto her honeyed flames and felt his tightly wound control snap.

Before she could speak Draco was in front of her, stepping into her and winding his hand into her hair, the other running down her hand and snatching the wand from her fingers.

He breathed a trail along her neck up to her ear, whispering lightly, “All I’ve done, I did to keep you safe. Hate me if you want.”He nipped her ear, making her shudder lightly in his hold, “But you? You put both our lives at risk without a second thought.”

He heard her sharp intake of breathe and the fingers that had wound their way into his shirt loosened their grip, he snickered. “You didn’t think about that did you? If you had died I wouldn’t be here either. If you had died I’d be a fucking suicidal nutbag. If you had died, I’d have died with you, and I’d have no choice in the matter.”

He pulled her hair lightly, tipping her head back to look him in the eyes, “You don’t get it, whether you like it or not, you’re the only thing that matters to me.”

He leant down and bit her on the lip, watching closely as her pupils dilated and her breaths came in hot puffs.

She whimpered, suddenly slamming herself into his hold, running her hands along his chest frantically, looking up at him with shining eyes, “ _I’m sorry_ , Draco, truly. _Please_ , you have to forgive me, _please!_ ”

He stiffened, taking a moment, he realised he’d been releasing pheromones into the air, the smell skating by him, undetected in his fury.

Draco swallowed the venom pooling in his mouth, the sudden urge to keep her under was so overwhelming his grip became almost unbearibly tight.

_She would be safe, she would forget her troubles._

_But at what price?_

Taking a breath, Draco honed in on his senses, reeling his pulsing glands into a slow halt. After several moments, reins firmly back in hand, Draco took advantage of the remaining effects of his pheromones, ushering her towards the bed.

She sighed, rubbing her lips over whatever skin she could reach, breathing him in deeply as Draco arranged them on the comforter, seating himself on the edge with her curled sideways across his thighs. His hand stroked over her hair as she nuzzled in close. Sighing, Draco closed his eyes and rolled his shoulders. Opening when she reached out, gripping his torso tight and hugging herself closer as she looked up at him with wide shining eyes.

It was Draco’s turn to sigh, his grip on his control now firmly back in place, he rolled his shoulders again before taking ahold of her waist and quickly flipping her until she was bent over his left knee, face inches from the ground and rear straight up in the air, he’d hooked her legs under his right so she was unable to move.

She gasped, reaching out and clinging to the leg propping her waist, Draco stroked his hand over the curve of her behind soothingly until she stopped wriggling and calmed once more.

Before she could register a change, Draco brought his left hand down, tangling in her hair at the back of her head at the same time as raising the other high.

_Smack!_

She jumped in his grip, wriggling and struggling to get away from the sharp pain, even as his hand came down again.

_Smack! Smack!_

She yelped, unable to move under the firm pressure of his hand behind her head and his legs locking her in place over his thigh. When he hit her with an open palm she thrashed, the blood rushing to her head was keeping her disoriented, but the pheromones were beginning to fade from her blood, and with it her ire was rising, first with indignant anger, then mortification as she took in her position and the open palm swatting her firmly from behind.

“Let me up!” She growled, wriggling hard.

Draco ignored her, bringing his hand down in another three successive slaps.

“ _Ow! Ow! Ow!_ Draco, let me up before I kill you!”

He ignored her, focused intently on the rump under his palm. His sense of calm returning slowly with each yelp that brushed his ears.

He kept up a steady rhythm despite her protests and yips, it wasn’t until she finally let forth a choked sob amongst the broken curses that he slowed to a stop.

  
Draco rested his palm on her rear, stroking with his fingers until her sobs and sniffles ceased. Before she could register, he’d flipped her around again to straddle his waist, pulling her in close by her hips and bringing her head up to pepper kisses across her tear streaked face.

Hermione turned her face away, bringing her hands up to push tiredly at his unyielding chest. When he stood them up and began crawling over the bed with her still wrapped tightly around him she shoved at him while he settled himself between her legs.


	126. Chapter 126

**GINNY**

“I still don’t get it.”

Ginny’s eyes snapped over to the obnoxious Slytherin standing behind the bar who had spent the last fifteen minutes loudly milking his companions for every detail of their escape. Lyra had snapped at him after only a few minutes and grumbled her way out of the room in search of a bed and sleep.

Daphne sighed, staring longingly at Blaise’s glass before dropping her chin in her palm. Theo swallowed an almost full glass of fire whiskey before thumping his chest and belching loudly, raising his fist daintily and clearing his throat.

Daphne’s head slowly turned, levelling Theo with an unimpressed look before returning her eyes to Blaise.

Theo cleared his throat, “None of us do Blaise, I’ll have to run a few tests on him to see if I can identify a resurgence marker.” Theo held up his empty glass to eye level, frowning, he turned his attention to the silent redheads still planted in the same position on the chaise by the fireplace they’d been led to upon their arrival, both staring back wide eyed.

“You don’t mind, do you, Weasley?” He turned, attempting an appraising look but failing with one eye squinting out at them.

Fred turned to face Theo, the marred side of his of his features now bared and on display in the well lit room. Blaise being the only one who hadn’t witnessed the full effect of his disfigurement, dropped the bottle in his hand with a loud crash behind the bar when Fred’s bulging, blue eye spun around frantically, stopping abruptly on Blaise.

“ _Salazar!_ What in Merlin’s name happened to your eye?”

Ginny scowled at Blaise, crossing her arms and Daphne sighed, Theo sat up a little straighter when Fred ignored Blaise’s question in favour of his own, “What are you?”

Blaise blinked. “Come again?”

Fred attempted to squint his regular eye as he appraised the wizard his magical eye was currently trained, “I can see magic, it’s hard to concerntrate on, I can’t control what I look at, but right now my eye is trained on you, and you’re….glowing, sort of, like under your skin, it’s red.”

Theo quirked a brow and Blaise frowned, Ginny bit her lip, looking on wide eyed, anxiety creeping up her spine.

_Where was Hermione?_

“Would you describe the glowing as muted, slightly faded or transparent? Or would you describe it as bright, intense?”

Everyone’s eyes turned to Theo who was looking out at the room through the bottom of his glass, dropping it when his question went unanswered, he sighed, ”What? Like you all, aren’t curious?”

At this everyone’s eyes seemed to flicker back to Fred, shifting uncomfortably in his seat, looking all the more like a cornered animal, his magical eye flitting from one person to another, but ultimately falling on Blaise, time and again.

“I suppose it probably has something to do with the blood wards on the house.” Blaise said after a pause, squirming slightly under the watchful gaze of Fred Weasleys magical eye.

Fred frowned, “It’s not,” he raised his hand, pointing, “I can see those, they’re gold, tied around your wrists. It’s… it’s your blood, it’s darker, a pulsing…glow or something.”

Daphne’s hand snapped out and took ahold of Blaise’s wrist, a thoughtful expression across her face as she stroked his veins, looking for clues under his skin.

Ginny was frozen in place as her mind caught up with her, oft whispers and taunts flickering across her ears.

_Where was Hermione?_

An eyrie ring began to hover around the edges and she felt her chest start to constrict, she didn’t know what was happening but the voices around her began to trickle into a sluggish haze as the world began closing in, pressing down on her skin. She hugged herself close, clutching at her forearms and rubbing warmth into her iced over veins.

When the door flew open with a loud bang she gasped, everything returning to a sharp focus when she looked up into the black blue gaxe of a tall dark woman, looking down on her with fierce eyes.

_Where was Hermione?_

She couldn’t hear what was said as the dark began crowding around her vision before everything went black.


	127. Chapter 127

**HERMIONE**

She couldn’t believe his nerve! She was going to kill him! When his chest dropped down on hers and pressed her into the bed, her rage exploded from her chest, crackling along her limbs, left hand reaching up to tangle in his locks as she pulled hard, making him hiss, when she brought her right hand up and dug her thumb into the soft flesh behind his clavicle he let out furious growl, collapsing slightly from shock enough that Hermione used the momentum to flip them over, ripping his wand from his hand, she flicked it quickly, holding her breathe as thick black ropes appeared around his wrists, pulling his hands up behind his head as they secured themselves tightly to the headboard.

The mottled rage staring out at her from his glacial eyes calmed her oddly enough. It meant _this_ time, she was the one in control.

Thinking quickly she summoned an apple and shoved it into Draco’s snarling mouth before he had the thought to compell her or unbind himself.

Sighing, Hermione slumped, eyes closed. Straddling Draco’s waist looking like a dejected child.

Opening her eyes, she looked down into the furious gaze of the blonde below her, “Don’t you _dare_ look at me like that, _you tried to influence me_ , not once, but fucking _twice!_ You don’t even _realise_ it, do you?”

At her words the rage in his eyes iced over, frozen as he processed her words, “You’re a spoiled fucking prat!” She spat, eyes stinging, “You  _promised_ me you wouldn’t try and lock me away. You promised, and now you think the best way to deal with me is to _compell_ me like some _dimwitted slave!”_

When the tears began pool in her eyes Draco stilled, his breath nonexistent. “I understand you’re afraid to lose me, but this is _war_ Draco, everybody loses someone. We aren’t special, we aren’t an exception, we’re just two people with a rather undortunate lot in life.”

At these words, the fire in his eyes blazed to life, a moment later his arms were free and he was sitting up, spitting out the apple and locking his arms around her, “You’re mistaken Granger,” he whispered so quietly she almost didn’t hear, ”Fate willed us together for a  reason, I’m beginning to think it’s because you need me. You _need_ someone to put you above the rest, to fight to protect your future. Because without you, I don’t see a future. I see a bleak wasteland of dead dreams and repeated mistakes. You’re a revolution,” he whispered almost reverently, reaching up to tuck a wayward curl behind her ear before gripping her jaw and holding her eyes, “and every revolution needs room to grow, where are you going to grow if you’re dead?”

Hermione felt her breath catch in her chest, that hadn’t been what she expected, at all. She’d expected platitudes of love and devotion, a desperate justification to keep her alive and safe. But Draco was looking at her as if he knew exactly who she was and what she was supposed to do, like she wasn’t just important to him, she was important to the world.

Just like that, she felt her rage give one last shuddering breath, alarmed, she mentally reached out, grasping onto the vestiges of what was now an echo, it’s ashy remnant slipping between her fingers like sand.


	128. Chapter 128

**THEO**

“Don’t worry Weasley, she’s just gone into shock.” Theo frowned down at the array of potions, tinctures and extracts littered about the bedside table. As soon as Elenore had entered the parlour, Ginny Weasley had collapsed in a writhing pile on the floor. Seemingly unconscious, but for the odd jerking spasm.

“You call this _shock?_ ” Fed demanded, clutching his sister’s hand.

Theo sighed, rubbing the back of his neck, “Red has sustained a lot more trauma than she let on when we arrived, Lyra couldn’t know the full extent of it, and Hermione hasn’t been available for questions, though I’m sure she doesn’t know either, Lyra told me what she could, but she didn’t know what they were doing to her when they took her out of the cell.”

“What do you mean?”

Theo grimaced, “Lyra claims they took her upstairs, into the castle a few times, each time she came back unconscious with no memory of ever having been there when she woke up.”

Fred blinked, face paling as he looked down at the broken form of his baby sister.

“I’ll give her some diluted Swooping Evil venom when she wakes up.”

“That doesn’t exactly sound friendly.”

Theo smirked, “It’ll help her forget the bad memories, stop any latent hair triggers, that sort of thing.”

Fred frowned, “How do you know it’ll work?”

Theo frowned, eyes turning to the sleeping redhead, “I’ve been dossing Narcissa’s tea for about two years now.”

“What?! _Why?”_

Theo huffed, shoving his hand in his pocket and pulling out his flask, unscrewing the lid and taking a long pull before answering, “Narcissa’s not only witnessed a lot of horrible things, she experienced them first hand, all for the sake of her son. You should know, she won’t have a clue who you are, anyone who was present during her….confinement, or even just reminds her of that time, just kind of slips from her mind. She’s not loony or anything, just a little flighty.”

“I don’t know if I want you giving my sister anything that will mess with her memories.”

Theo shrugged, “Its just an idea, I’m sure if she asks, I can come up with something else. Hell, Hannah just smokes a lot of Pot.”

Fred blinked, “Hannah?”

“Abbott, you know her?” Fred nodded, “She was locked up with Draco a while back, some bad shit happened to her as well, I gave her a few different things to experiment with, but she just likes to smoke up in the window seat and read a book, says it’s soothing.”

Fred tilted his head, “What’s pot?”

Theo grinned, offering Fred his flask, who promptly declined, “Keep up, Weasley.” Pulling out his pocket watch Theo gave him a look, “Come on down to my greenhouse, it’s just after breakfast so Hannah’s probably down there already. I’ll show you my lab.”

Fred was about to shake his head and decline, preferring to stay with his sister when he felt the Slytherins hand on his shoulder, making him look up, “She’s gonna be okay, she’s probably going to be asleep for the next couple of days while her body and mind heal itself. There’s nothing else we can do until she’s ready to wake up, besides if you’re going to be staying, you might as well take a look around.”

Swallowing, Fred gave a short and hesitant nod, standing shakily and following Theo from the room.

 


	129. Chapter 129

**HERMIONE**

Sighing, Hermione pushed her way into the parlour, coming upon a curious scene, Blaise had summoned a mirror and was looking at every angle of his face in curious wonderment, whilst Elenore and Daphne chatted over drinks, a floating bottle of red wine between the two.

Her brow furrowed, “Where is everyone?”

All three looked at her, Daphne was the one to answer, “The younger Weasley had a panic attack. Theo and her brother are looking after her, and Lyra went to find a bed.”

Hermione frowned, “Where is she? Is she alright?”

“She’s sleeping in one of the guest rooms. Theo is tending to her, she’s in good hands.”

Hermione snorted, “Good hands? He wasn’t even _sober_ when I left!”

Elenore clucked her tongue, “He’s a functioning alcoholic dear, the girl is fine.”

Hermione turned her attention to Blaise, who was examining his eyes now, nose pressed up to the mirror, “What the hell is he doing?”

Daphne grumbled and Elenore sighed, “He’s just discovered himself, he’s quite taken.”

At Hermione’s puzzled expression Daphne explained, “Elenore’s great grandmother was a selkie witch, selkies are known to be able to entrance anyone with just the sound of their voice, as long as they’re not in possession of their pelts.”

Hermione frowned, “Blaise doesn’t have a pelt.”

THe wizard in question spoke for the first time as he spun around beaming, “ _Exactly!”_

Hermione felt her brow furrow further, “What the _hell_ is going on?”

Elenore sighed, summoning a glass and holding it out to be filled by the floating bottle before handing the drink off to Hermione, “Your friend with the strange eye could see my son’s diluted selkie blood at work, he was reacting to the girl you brought back.”

“Ginny?”

Elenore nodded absently, taking another sip, “ _Why?”_

Elenore looked at her with a pitying gaze, “Selkies came about as the half human offspring of mermaids. When they’re born, they’re cursed to hear the wails of violated women, compelled to come to their aid, nature’s retribution I should say, that’s how they would get caught. They would come on land to offer comfort to these maids, women who had been violated like their mothers. But they would first need to hide their pelts, lest they be cursed again, to stay on land. Well, my great, great grandmother was one such selkie. Blaise was simply reacting to Miss Weasley’s distress, even if he didn’t know it at the time.” Here she threw a stink eye at her son, still openly preening in the mirror.

Hermione blinked, “Blaise is a selkie?”

“Of course not, he’s simply exhibiting a blood trait.”

Elenore leant forward and grasped her arm, “My son is naturally charismatic and perceptive, that is all, he didn’t notice, not at first, but he was reacting to your friends pain. I myself came when her cries met my ears.”

Hermione frowned, clearing her throat hoarsely, “Where is she?”


	130. Chapter 130

**HARRY**

The ashy burn in his throat is what woke him. Hacking and coughing, Harry squinted at the pale light illumating his room. The heavy clouds unable to completely block out the morning light.

Sighing, he hefted himself up, looking about at the bottles and paper littering his room. Ron’s slumped form at the foot of his bed gave him pause. COntinuing cautiously, shuffling about quietly until his legs were over the side of the bed and he could fall forward into his hands.

This was agony. He’d spent the last two night drinking himself into oblivion. Ron more than happy to share in their misery. Glancing about his room, Harry stood up slowly, head pounding and spinning as he attempted to stretch, the harsh cracks echoing loudly in the otherwise silent room, making him wince.

  
Stumbling over to his waste basket, Harry began picking up the empty bottles, careful not to wake the snoring redhead who had rolled onto his back, head hanging over the side of his bed as his snores got even louder.

Grimacing, Harry picked up his wand off the bedside and cast a silent muffliato as he continued picking everything up. When he got to his desk he paused, looking down at the papers scattered about he shuffled them around, looking for one in particular, eyes searching out that familllar looping scrawl.

When he found it, his heart stopped upon reading the first line.

_Harry I found her._

_Ginny is alive, she’s safe here. I’m taking care of her. Harry, I need to tell you something else. You probably won’t believe me, when we rescued Ginny, we also rescued another girl from the dungeons as well, a student. We used the old tunnels through Honeydukes and came upon two Death Eaters. One was the man known as Mulciber, who is now dead. The other…the other is someone we never would have anticipated._

_The end is coming, Harry. My stones will be ready soon and we can finally bring the fight to him._

_I’ll write again when Ginny is awake, for now, just know that she’s safe with me._

_All my love,_

_Hermione._

  
Harry sat staring at the parchment for a long time, unable to comprehend or accept the words written down before him. It took the loud groan of the waking wizard behind him to stir him from his stupor.

“What’s that?”

Harry turned and saw Ron, bleary eyed and sleepy, looking over his shoulder at the rumpled parchment Harry had clutched tightly in both hands still.

Not saying a word, Harry handed him the letter staring blindly at nothing, tears stinging at his eyes, finally falling when Ron’s loud cheer broke the silence.


	131. Chapter 131

**DRACO**

“I’m not sure I like this plan.”

Theo tutted, casting several diagnostics over Fred whilst he sat ramrod straight, the only other sign of his aphrehensive state being the frantically twitching eye that rolled around in its socket at a frantic speed, landing of objects randomly for a split second before honing in on the next. Draco sat across from him with his arms crossed in front of him on the small table between them, propping his chin in his hand and watching Fred’s eye dance around the room, sporadically landing back on Draco himself before spinning around again.

“It’s nothing to be afraid of, Draco is a great legilimens. You won’t feel any pain whatsoever.”

“It’s not pain I’m afraid of.” He murmured, glancing at Theo then back to Draco.

“What exactly do you see Weasley? Blaise said that you could see magic at work.” Draco cut in quickly, eager to move things along.

Fred grimaced, “Sort of, I can see everything, and I do mean _everything_.” At this, he eyed Draco warily, glancing over his shoulder, Draco held back a grimace.

When his attention returned, Fred continued, “It’s all sort of…fuzzy, like the images flicker brightly, the brighter it is the more it draws my gaze, certain things I just sort of… _know_ what they are, almost instinctively. Others, it’s like...like the eye examines it more closely to help me figure it out. Like you, for example.”

Here Fred pointed, completely ignoring Theo casting his spells, “You light up like a bloody Christmas tree, those wings look cramped up, and there’s like this orangey-red mist coming off of you, like perfume or cologne maybe, around your neck. Normally I’d tell you to lay off the aftershave, but with the eye I can see it’s your... scent? Then there’s the energy.”

Fred leaned back in his chair looking him up and down, “It’s all over you, like sparking through your blood, it doesn’t stop or slow down. Just constantly crackling everywhere.”

Draco watched intrigued as Fred’s eye almost seemed to flicker, as if attempting to follow the path of said energy.

“All done, we’re ready to go.” Theo announced suddenly, Draco watched Fred blink as he realised Draco had successfully distracted him through the whole process.

“Ready, Weasley?”

Fred threw a look at Theo, “As ready as I’ll ever be.”

Theo tutted, “Now remember, clear your mind, Draco’s going to be looking for any buried memories that your subconscious might have locked away. I mean, things you can’t remember, not naughty memories or fantasies-“

“Theo!”

Theo turned, grinning cheekily, “Dont mind me, do what you need to do Draco.”

Scowling, Draco took a breathe, rolling his shoulders and pointing his wand at Fred’s head, “ _Legilimens_.”


	132. Chapter 132

**HERMIONE**

“It was _horrible_ Granger, Weasley was in the change rooms and had his head up some Gryffindor’s quidditch robes-“

“ _Ugh!_  Don’t tell me that! I don’t want to know what Fred and Katie did or didn’t do in private!”

“They weren’t in private, they were in the quidditch change rooms.”

Hermione slammed her hands over her ears, “I’m not listening.”

“You have to, there isn’t one shred of his life before I lifted the curse, not one memory. From the moment he got cleaned out in the Hogwarts battle it’s like his conscious mind just went on holiday.”

Hermione bit her lip, summoning a rag and wiping down Ginny’s sleeping brow, “It could be a side effect of the curse.” She glanced at Draco, seemingly exhausted if the way he was slumped back in his chair was any indiciation.

“It is, whoever cast it was powerful and precise. They had to have commanded him to forget should he ever manage to fight it off. There was some extensive scarring. If he was fighting the curse, and it looks like he did a lot of it, it’s been a long time since he made any attempts. Those scars are _old_ , Granger.”

Hermione bit her lip, contemplating her response when the witch by her hip coughed. Losing her train of thought, Hermione’s eyes immediately snapped to the girl on the bed, watching as she blinked blearily in the darkened room. Becoming aware once more in a matter of seconds she managed to fling herself into an upright position, pressed tightly to the headboard.

Hermione regarded her with kind eyes, “Ginny it’s me, it’s Hermione.”

Her wild blue eyes shot to Hermione’s face, drinking every feature in, “ _Hermione?”_

“Yes, it’s me Ginny, you’re safe.”

The witches lip trembled, “Hermione? Where-What’s going on?” Her eyes flickered to the bored looking blonde on her other side, “What’s _he_ doing here?”

”Venting my troubles, until you so rudely interrupted.”

Ginny frowned, eyes flickering between the two, “What’s going on?”

Hermione sighed, “You were taken captive in the Hogwarts dungeons and tortured quite rigorously for several days. We broke you out and brought you here, you’ve been asleep for almost three days now, don’t you remember?”

Ginny blinked, “ _Lyra_.”

“What?”

Ginny looked confused, “I-I don’t remember anything you’re saying, but I remember lying on a stone floor, talking to Lyra. I mean, I think that’s her name, she told me it was, I’m certain of it.”

  
“It is!”

Hermione’s head whipped over her shoulder to see Theo standing in the doorway beaming.

She narrowed her eyes.

“What did you do?”

Theo strolled into the room, hands out in a supplicant manner as he turned to Ginny, “I just made sure when you woke up, your mind would be a little more sound.”

Ginny blanched and Hermione grit her teeth, “ _What_ did you do?”

Theo scratched his jaw, “I slipped a little diluted Swooping Evil venom into her calming draught,” he turned back to Ginny, “How do you feel? Nauseous? Disorientented?”

Ginny blinked, looking around at the rooms occupants in turn before bringing her eyes back to Theo, “My head’s a little fuzzy, and my body feels like it’s been smacked into a wall by a troll.”

Theo grinned, “Excellent! You’re well on your way to a full recovery!”

He raised his wand making Ginny flinch as he began running some diagnostic spells, muttering to himself. Ginny turned her wide eyes to Hermione, silently asking her what the hell was happening.

When Theo tutted they both looked in his direction. He was frowning, running his wand over little blue clusters of light floating in front of the red headed witch.

“What’s wrong?”

Theo scratched his jaw again, “Nothing, there’s just a little more scar tissue than I anticipated.”

When Hermione felt her curiousity pique she shot a look to the silent blonde in the corner, content to sit back and observe. Currently he was looking at two with a raised brow, fingers stroking the arms of his chair absently.

_Scar tissue?_

Theo plucked a small bluish vial from his pocket, “Here red, take this. You need more rest, not much point in trying to eat anything right now, your intestines are in knots, you’ll just throw it up.”

Ginny looked at Hermione in askance, when she nodded encouragingly, Ginny cautiously reached her hand out.

Sniffing the bottle, she slowly brought the vial to her lips and let it slip down her throat. Sighing at the immediate soothing effect, eyes fluttering as she quickly drifted back off to sleep.

Hermione stood, rearranging the sleeping witch into a more comfortable position.

“Granger.”

Hermione looked up at a reticent looking Theo, “It’s not just scar tissue.”

Frozen, Hermione watched as Theo stepped around the bed and pushed Ginny’s hair back, tilting her head gently and exposing the back of her neck, a jagged bite sized mark nestled just below her hair line, bulging and red.

“ _Theo_ …”

“That’s a _bite_ Granger, she’s been infected.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dun, dun DUNNNN did you love it? Did you hate it? I’ll end it here so I can give myself a chance to get ahead again, today is one of my few days off so I should get a few more chapters written. Drop me a line and let me know your thoughts! Xoxo


	133. Chapter 133

**HARRY**

 

He’d been bouncing off of the walls all day, it had been almost four days now since Hermione’s last missive of Ginny’s rescue, and she had yet to write back with an update. He refused to let it affect his joy in knowing she was safe, if that was the case, he could bask in the security of that comfort until reality reared it’s ugly head once more.

 

It was when the alarms began blaring throughout the house, that Harry felt the small smile that he’d been unable to drop fall for the first time in days.

 

Before he’d had a chance to grab his wand Ron slammed his door open, Harry stood up from the bed, grabbing his wand as Ron panted, “It’s a false alarm.”

 

Harry turned a dubious eye on the redhead, “Well not _false-_ false alarm. There _are_ two Death Eaters downstairs, right now, apparently they’ve been wandering around the street for a few hours, Hagrid spotted them from the roof and told dad. No one knows what to make of them, so Kingsley and dad hid in an alley and waited for them to walk passed. Stunned ’em and brought ‘em inside. They’re in the drawing room now, the alarm went off when they brought them over the threshold.”

 

Harry stepped forward, pushing passed Ron and bolting downstairs, the redhead wizard close behind. The hallways was chaos with people flitting back and forth.

 

Ron called from over his shoulder, “Everyone’s been ordered to return to their rooms until they figure out what to do.”

 

Harry came to a halt, shoving the drawing room doors open to see Kingsley and McGonagall, stood murmuring over two bound wizards, their black cloaks and masked hooded faces, leaving no question as to who they were dealing with.

 

About the room was Mr and Mrs Weasley, Katie Bell’s father Grant, Hagrid, Charlie and George. When Harry opened the door all conversations ceased.

 

McGonagall cleared her throat, “Potter-“

 

“Who are they?”

 

Kingsley stepped forward, “We don’t know who they are, only that they seemed to be patrolling the streets along the neighbourhood, we can only assume they were looking for us.”

 

Ron stepped up beside Harry, “But why would two Death Eaters be strolling around muggle London, looking for the order? That’s Barmey.”

 

“What have they said?” Harry asked.

 

Arthur kissed Molly’s hands before stepping up, “They haven’t said anything yet, we’ve kept them stunned and bound, until we can decide on a course of action.”

 

Harry frowned, “Well shouldn’t we find out who were dealing with first?”

 

“No one has been able to remove their masks Potter.” McGonagall intoned.

 

Harry frowned, _that_   _was_ _new_. Stepping up, he used his wand to push the head back of the heavier of the two, a breathless grunt escaping his masked mouth as he did so.

 

He tapped the mans mask with his wand, “ _Inncendio_ ”

 

Gasps followed as the mask turned a mottled red, before fading to gray and crumpling to ashy pieces floating to the floor.

 

Beneath the mask was a face Harry didn’t think he’d ever see again. He’d actually assumed he was dead to be honest. He looked much unchanged in his maturity, a wide set face, with a naturally furrowed brow, set amongst heavy features, it was unmistakable, he’d last seen it blown wide with terror, fleeing the room of requirement.

 

Ron was the first to break the silence, “Blimey- that’s Goyle!”

 

McGongall was the first to respond, straightening in her shock, “Gregory? Are you certain Weasley?”

 

He nodded, “Yeah, I mean he looks a lot older, and mangier, but that’s definitely him.”

 

Harry turned to the other, quickly disposing of his mask in the same way, though when this mans face was revealed, he had no idea who he was. That is, until George stepped forward, “That’s Myles Fell, a Ravenclaw from my year.”

 

The room stood in silent contemplation on what to do when Harry took a breath and raised his wand, this time McGonagall was fast to react and caught his wrist before he had the chance to cast.

 

“Potter, we don’t know why they’re here, it could be a trap.”

 

Harry frowned, not yet lowering his wand, “Of course it could be a trap. But they’re here now, they’re bound and they’re not getting out anytime soon, I assume we took their wands and searched them before bringing them inside the house?”

 

Kingsley gave a feint nod and McGonagall dropped his wrist, lowering her arm hesitantly.

 

Making a snap decision, Harry decided to start with what he knew, stepping in front of Goyle, he raised his wand to the wizard forehead, “ _Rennervate_.”

 

Goyle shot upright, gasping, eyes wide, he looked about the room with obvious increasing fear, taking in all the faces in the room staring him down. When he looked up and found Harry Potter, staringhim down from the tip of his wand, he gulped.


	134. Chapter 134

**HERMIONE**

 

“Granger.”

 

Hermione bit her lip, concerntrating on the potion in front of her, taking note of the colour, steam and bubbling levels. Everything was _perfect_.

 

“Granger.”

 

She closed her eyes, tilting her head back lightly and making a small sound in acknowledgement, “There isn’t anything more you can do, Theo injected her with wolf’s bane, until the next full moon, all we can do is wait.”

 

Hermione huffed, turning with narrowed eyes on Draco, “Don’t you think I _know_ that already? Don’t you think I wish there was something- _anything_ I could do for her?”

 

“No one blames you for what happened, it’s not your fault.”

 

Hermione rounded on him, “I know!”

 

Draco blinked, tilting his head.

 

Hermione sneered, “Of course, the all knowing Veela, how could I forget?”

 

Draco remained unfazed, running his eyes over her face, making her feel cornered. “You’ve done more for that girl than any person will likely do for her in her entire life, let it go.”

 

Hermione grit her teeth, “Just because you have free access to my emotions, does not mean you understand how I’m feeling.”

He stepped into her space, making her look up and brace her hands on the bench behind her, as he leant into her, “Let. It. Go.”

 

She trembled, adrenaline spiking her veins as rage exploded through her being, Bringing her hands up, she shoved at his chest, “You don’t know! You don’t understand! I watched them, all of them come back, one after another. I helped put them back together! Every time!”

 

Hermione felt the fire burning in her chest begin licking up her throat, stinging her eyes, clutching at Draco’s shirt she whispered hoarsely, “ _I_ fixed them, _I_ put them back together. I made sure They came back.”

 

He brought his hands to her elbows, cradling her forearms in his, “You can’t save everyone.”

 

She felt the licks of calmness caressing her skin and immediately pulled back, “No! I need to _feel_ this Draco! I need to feel it, it’s the only way I can figure out how to fix it!”

 

Draco brought his arms around her shoulders and pulled her into his chest as he enveloped her in his arms, humming lightly under his breath, she pushed and shoved angrily, becoming more and more vocal until eventually, her cries and grunts became sniffles and drawn out breaths, rattling her frame, all the while, Draco cradled her to his chest, humming a low seamless tune into her hair.


	135. Chapter 135

**THEO**

 

“So you’re like, the on-site mediwitch?”

 

Theo glanced up from his microscope to smirk at Fred whose eyes were both locked on what he was doing.

 

“You could say that.”

 

There was a scoff behind him and Theo grinned, glancing over his shoulder.

 

“Something to add, Miss Abott?”

 

Hannah scooted herself up into a more dignified position from her place at the window seat and closed her book, shooting Theo an evil eye before turning to Fred, “Theo is a class six diagnostics healer. He completed his training via correspondence and floo calls with the Dijon Institute of Magical Maladies over a year ago.”

 

Fred blinked, looking at Hannah blankly, she rolled her eyes, pushing herself off of her perch. She made her way around the table, going through drawers and banging things about. Fred cast a concerned look to Theo, who just shrugged, swapping out slides on his microscope.

 

Huffing, Hannah disappeared into one of the filing cabinets, her dainty legs balancing precariously until she pulled herself upright, blowing a lock of hair from her face and marching over to Fred. She tossed a folder with several sheeves of parchment onto his lap.

 

“Here, take a look.”

 

Frowning, Fred opened the plain white binding, glancing at Theo unsurely, the wizard in question simply continued humming to himself and scratching out notes on his parchment as he glanced through his slides.

 

Sighing, Fred let his eyes scan the page. A lot of the phrases were jibberish or in French but he understood enough to realise what he was looking at. This was Theo’s training and test scores. His spastic blue eye took in words faster than he could process and in just a few minutes Fred had gotten through every page in silent awe. There was no question about it, Theodore Nott was a certifiable genius.

 

“How the hell are you a qualified healer? Let alone a specialised one!? We’re in the middle of a war!”

 

Theo scratched his jaw, “ _We_ aren’t in a war. Your people are, we abbonned Britain, do you really think we just ran away and stuck our heads in the sand?”

 

Fred opened his mouth but couldn’t find his words before Theo interjected, “One of the first things we did once settling everyone in was secure our standing. We may be in international waters, but everyone needs friends, especially if you’re abandoning your family as well as your country.”

 

“What do you mean?”

 

Theo blinked, “Everyone on this island, and I do mean everyone Weasley, has been granted French citizenship and asylum.”

 

“ _Seriously?_ ”

 

Theo nodded, “I suspect Elenore has already left to see to yours and Reds papers, a precaution really.”

 

Fred blinked, “Why would she do that?”

 

“You’re both still British citizens, if the wrong people found out about you, the French ministry would be legally bound to hand you over, what with the Dark Lord holding power in Britain, we’re all technically considered fugitives and terrorists, not that they’d ever find you here.”

 

“If they can’t find us then why bother with the semantics?”

 

“Just because we’re safe here, doesn’t mean we don’t ever want to leave, Weasley.”

 

“So you’re ensuring legal protection as well as magical?”

 

“In a sense, the world hasn’t stopped spinning just because the Dark Lord is alive, if you hadn’t noticed, Wizarding Britain is in a civil war. The rest of the Wizarding World is just sitting back and waiting to see who takes control.”

 

Fred seemed to be absorbing this information greedily, connecting dots rapidly in his mind, “So the French won’t help? But they’ll take in strays? What about the rest of Europe?”

 

Theo clucked his tongue and Hannah interjected, “They don’t want to support any one side, in fear that they’ll be targeted, should the…outcome prove unfavourable.”

 

Fred blinked, “But how can they just turn a blind eye? As if none of it matters?”

 

Hannah scowled and Theo chuckled, “Self preservation is a powerful thing Weasley, the only difference between us, is that we were _raised_ on the hericharchy, we know how it works, how to play the game. You need allies if you’re going to survive, resting on your laurels will only get you so far.”

 

Fred blinked, “That still doesn’t explain the healer thing.”

 

Theo grinned lazily, “I like healing, I get bored quite easily and healing keeps me occupied, and like I said, you need friends to survive. I’ve effectively garnered a reputation in diagnosing and treating foreign maladies that have yet to be studied.”

 

Fred cocked his head, “ _How?_ ”

 

Theo’s grin widened, “I can’t very well tell you all my secrets, can I now, Weasley?”

 

Fred looked at Theo hard before his eye suddenly began flitting about the room, he didn’t know what to make of the random and what he assumed, muggle instruments littered about the room, but he suddenly felt like his whole perception of these Slytherins Hermione had adopted was way off course. 


	136. Chapter 136

**GINNY**

 

“There’s no way for us to know the extent of your infection until the next full moon.”

 

Theo’s words were a soothing baritone that Ginny was beginning to tune out, Hermione sat beside her in support, gripping her hand tightly whilst Theo, extracted the blood from her arm with a needle.

 

 _How_ _did_ _this_ _happen?_ She couldn’t remember, Hermione had said it was because Theo had given her a drug, to block out bad memories. If they were so horrible then perhaps she needed to remember, needed to realise the extent of what had happened to her. The idea of reliving the kind of abuse she likely would have been subjected to in Death Eater captivity sent a shiver down her spine. Her time in confinement was not an experience she _wanted_ to remember, and she was silently glad Theo had the foresight to spare her from it. Hermione had been furious, ranting and raving about rights and anatomy, often and loudly. It always resulted in a headache for Ginny. In the five days she’d been here, she’d been amazed at what she saw here. What these Slytherins had managed to accomplish was staggering. Their inate ability to regroup was a feat anyone would be in awe of she thought, reflecting on when Daphne Greengrass had been given the task of showing her around.

 

“And this is the front entrance, as you’ve seen, you’ll come this way should we get around to some shopping during your stay, if you’d like to go. We usually draw sticks on who gets to go, but I’m sure Theo rigs it, should you voice the desire, he will accommodate.”

 

Her head was mess of colour and grandeur, this place was unlike anything she’d ever dreamed or heard of. It was magical in a different, more picturesque way than Hogwarts. _Hell_ , she thought, _it’s_ _probably_ _bigger_ _than_ _Hogwarts_.

 

“And this,” she had to pull up short to stop from running into the statuesque blonde, “is the Sentinel Wall.”

 

Ginny cocked her head, looking up she came face to face with what looked to be hundreds of statues, frozen in a merry dance, lining a thick stone wall, standing at least three meters from the ground, “Sentinel Wall?”

 

Daphne raised her hand to her eyes to shield against the mid morning sun, “The statues awaken when the palace is threatened, Blaise’s ancestor used to brag that he’d had them commissioned by Pygamillion himself, not that there’s any truth to that statement.”

 

At Ginny’s puzzled look Daphne explained, “Greek myth, a sculptor, Pygamillion, fell in love with his sculpture and brought her to life.”

 

Comprehension crossed her face, as she returned her gaze to the statues, eyes catching on a particular nymph, draped in a dress of delicate flowers twined around her body, she stood tall with one arm drawn back, nocking an arrow, eyes seemingly alight with fierce knowledge and trained on her.

 

She felt a hand come down on her shoulder and blinked, “Artemis.” Daphne breathed, “Good eye.”

 

Ginny felt trapped in her stare, “Who is she?”

 

“She is the goddess of hunters, of all living creatures,” here she gave Ginny a side long glance, “she is numen of the moon.”

 

Ginny shook herself from the memory, tuning back into the present, only to find that Hermione and Theo seemed to be arguing over something. In the next moment, Malfoy stepped through the door looking around at the occupants, “Where’s the other Weasley?”

 

Theo glanced up from his place at his microscope, “In the gardens, he’s taken a liking to your mother and Elenore.”

 

Malfoy pulled a face and ginny snickered, behind her, Hermione smothered a chuckle with a cough. When his piercingly cold eyes landed on her, Ginny felt a blush creeping up her ears.

 

When he stepped toward her, she forced herself not to flinch when he held up a fist, a delicate silver chain hanging from within his grasp, a golden liquid in a glass vial with a silver filigree lid.

 

Hesitantly, Ginny reached out and accepted the chain, looking from it to Draco’s blank face dubiously.

 

“Uh, thankyou?”

 

“You’re welcome.”

 

At her frown Theo snickered, while Hermione narrowed her gaze, “What is it?”

 

“Where’s the trust Granger?” Theo asked.

 

Hermione raided a brow, “I wouldn’t trust you with a barn owl.”

 

Theo staggered, clutching a hand to his chest, “That hurt Granger, truly, deeply.”

 

Ginny frowned at their bickering, turning her attention back to Malfoy, at his sigh she gave him a questioning look, he volunteered, “It’s _Felix_ _Felicus_ , everyone here gets enough for a six hour dose, it’s for the possibility of an emergency evacuation.”

 

The fighting behind her had ended for only a moment when she heard Hermione’s voice, “ _How_ did I not know about this? And how come I don’t get one?”

 

“Jealous Granger?”

 

Hermione turned, quickly throwing a stinging hex at Theo, catching him in the gut, watching in satisfaction as he bent at the waist with a groan, before turning her expectant gaze back to Draco, oblivious to the witch across from her watching her with a cocked head and arched brow.

 

“You don’t need it Granger, that pretty charm around your neck does more than just make you impervious to lies.” Draco was leant up against a table, flipping through the pages of one of Theo’s textbooks, seemingly bored.

 

Ginny looked at Hermione’s neck in surprised curiosity before flickering her gaze to her face, watching her brow furrow and her eyes narrow, reflexively holding her breath for the incoming tirriade, before she could open her mouth, Draco spoke once more, “Don’t bother huffing and puffing about it Granger, we both know I’m not stupid enough to put anything in that charm that would piss you off.”

 

As soon as it happened it stopped, and she deflated, Ginny watched, wideyed and fascinated as Hermione shifted from scolding to scolded in the space of a second.

 

“Although if you just told me what exactly you’ve done to the jewelry you’ve given me, I’d be a lot less likely to act suspicious, wouldn’t I?” Her words were muttered quietly and under her breath, but Ginny still had to smother her laugh with a cough when Draco suddenly began staring them down with those glacial eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ill leave it here because it’s 2am and I’m tired as hell, I’ll try and make time to post again in the next few days. XO


	137. Chapter 137

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I had wanted to upload these on Sunday, but my laptop crashed. Lucky for me, my IPad is fully functional. Also, it’s my day off and I’m sick in bed. Go figure. I’m not big on sharing playlists or reccing stories but, today I’m going to, hahaha I’m writing new chapters at the moment and I’ve been listening to one of my favourite albums on repeat that I haven’t listened to in an age. If you’ve never heard of her, Missy Higgins is an Australian singer/song writer, and she’s fucking amazing. Seriously, currently listening to my favourite album of hers, ‘On a Clear Night’, specifically her songs ‘100 round the bends’, ‘secret’ and ‘where I stood’. There are others, but I’ll let you guys find out for yourselves if you decide to give her a listen. Trust me, it’s worth it. 
> 
> This story will also be coming to a close in the near future, I’ve been spastically spitting out random chapters now that I’ve got my end game in sight, so, if there are any scenes, stories, perspectives that anyone would like to see or read more of, let me know, I’ll try my best to accomodate :) 
> 
> Lastly, I’m a big dramione shipper, I’ve read other fics, but dramione is really the only one that I keep up with, so I’m going to spread a little love and let anyone reading know that they should check out rewriting destiny by myawrites95 and all the wrong things by lovesbitca8, it’s a sequel to the right the to do, so if you’re unlucky and haven’t read it yet, please do. 
> 
> I’m writing this appallingly long authors note because I found out this story has reached over 20,000 hits! I realise a lot of that has to do with chapters but I’m still blown away, I’d love to get an idea of just how many people ARE reading, so if you’re so inclined, drop me a word. Every single one just brightens up my day. :)

**HARRY**

 

“And _why_ were you looking for us?”

 

Goyle, arms bound to his chair, shrugged, eyes locked on the floor, all the while Myles acne scarred face looked around the room wildly with bright azure eyes, hyperventilating faster and getting paler with each new face he found.

 

“Well?” Kingsley demanded again, “I will not ask again, and I _will_  administer Veritaserum.”

 

Goyle looked up slowly, staring at the wizard unseeingly, when McGonagall stepped forward, placing a hand on Kingsley’s shoulder.

 

“Perhaps, I should be the one to question them, I am afterall, familiar with both mister Goyle and mister Fell.”

 

Nodding in acquiescence, Kingsley vacated his position in front of the restrained Death Eaters, stepping to the side. McGonagall strode forward slowly, fixing her green catseyes on the two, “Mister Goyle, Mister Fell, it is unfortunate that we must speak under such circumstances, but desperate times have come for desperate measures.” Pinning them under her sharp gaze before continuing, “Now please explain, in full, how it is you came to be here.”

 

Goyle looked up at his old school professor, taking in her worn emerald robes and familiar stern hair before swallowing, “We didn’t know where to go. Draco disappeared a long time ago, along with any other purebloods we know. This was the only place we could think of.”

 

”How is it that you came to know just where _here_ is, exactly?”

 

Goyle bit his lip, looking at Myles who seemed to be completely lost to his panic, “Myles put a tracker on Weasley, back in Hogsmeade. We lost the trail about a block back, but we figured if we walked around long enough, we’d see someone or something, eventually.”

 

McGonagall’s eyes flickered to the redhead by Harry’s side, over Goyle’s shoulder, when Harry felt him flinch.

 

“Why mister Goyle, were you looking for us, as you were?”

 

Goyle swallowed, “I didn’t want to stay, not after Hogwarts, but my dad, my dad, he uh- he died, a couple of weeks ago, on a mission. So I can leave now, I could go- no one was watching me anymore, no one cares.”

 

The silence at that statement hung heavy in the room, the implication was a horrible one to contemplate.

 

McGonagall slowly turned to Myles, sighing when his panting, pale face became ashen, “Do pull yourself together, mister Fell.”

 

At that, his eyes grew wide and he straightened in his seat, trembling slightly, “Yes professor, I mean ma’am, I mean sir, I mean-“

 

McGonagall sighed, “That’s enough mister Fell, would you care to explain your part in this tale?”

 

Myles gulped, “I-I never wanted to be there either, but both my parents are dead, I’m a halfblood you see, my mum was a muggleborn, my family disowned my dad when he married her but they took me in, after they both died in a portkey accident when I was five. They’re a traditional pureblood family but they overlooked my blood status as I was the only male heir, my dads brothers had all girls. Until about three months ago, my uncle Alden and his wife Jenna had a boy.” He smiled shakily, sweatlining his brow and upper lip, “Phillip Alexander Fell, he also happens to be my dad’s oldest brother’s son, so there’s no contention whatsoever, really- not that I’d _ever_ , er, that is-“

 

McGongall huffed, “Fell!”

 

The Death Eater turned child jumped in his seat, licking his lips, “Yes, well, I love my cousin, all my cousins, but now things are different and I’m not sure how long I’ll last, if I stick around.”

 

At her bemused look, he hurried to explain, “My uncles are all relatively young, and the second one of their wives pops out another boy, I‘m dead. Not maybe, not possibly, dead. My family _cares_  about their public image, and with the way things are going, having a halfblood heir isn’t all that flattering to that image. I was a necessity, born of desperation, now I’m a place holder. I don’t particularly care for the lordship of the house, one way or another, but my family do, and they assume I’ll try and take it once their back are turned.”

 

His eyes went glassy as he starred off into space, voice cracking slightly, “We were playing quidditch, on the back lawns last month, we always gather the entire family to brunch on the first Sunday of the month, it’s tradition. I was playing seeker, I didn’t even notice how high I’d flown when it happened.” He gulped, “My broom jerked, right out from under me, I almost went plummeting before I could grab it, it jerked around again, but I was ready this time, I grabbed on with both hands and steered it lower, until it was close enough to the ground for me to land in the shrubs.”

The room was quiet as Myles took a shaky breath and continued.

“They all said it was a faulty broom, that it was just old or damaged, but I knew. I’m a Ravenclaw, I can tell the difference between a jumping jinx and a faulty elevation charm,” he sneered, hiccuping through a sudden onslaught of tears, voice breaking as he continued.

“I can’t _be_ there anymore- I can’t _be_ this person! Lyra’s gone- she got away, thank the Founders, I know it’s cowardly to abandon my post, especially with all those children in the castle- but I _can’t_ do it anymore! _I_ _can’t_ _take_ _it!_ ”

 

Myles began panting through the tears streaming down his face, and Goyle looked as uncomfortable as he could possibly get in his bound position. Breaking the tense silence with a drawn out, screeching jolt of his chair leg, when he unconsciously reached out with his bound hand to comfort the crying Death Eater, tied up beside him.

 

Mumbling under his breathe, Goyle looked up at the bemused and stupefied faces around the room before rounding back to a shocked McGonagall. Clearing his throat lowly, McGonagall blinked, turning her shrewd and surprised stare back to Goyle.

 

“So...can we stay?”

 

Harry snorted.

 


	138. Chapter 138

**HERMIONE**

 

Hermione was walking to the lounge with Ginny, having spent the morning in the library looking for the right ingredient to finish her potion, something with strong enough properties to keep it all bound together, alas, she arrived at an answer she didn’t like, but felt was necessary all the same.

 

They were almost at the open door, when voices began drifting out, the first was unmistakeably Draco.

 

“No.”

 

“Why not?” This voice was whiny and screechy, in an intentional way. Pansy.

 

“I said no.”

 

“Tell us why.”

 

“I don’t feel like going that far.”

 

She snorted, “It’s not like we’re travelling on foot.”

 

At his growl, Hermione skipped forward rounding the door, Pansy was at her perch on the piano whilst Draco and Theo sat sharing a bottle of firewhiskey at the bar, Fred had somehow roped Daphne and Blaise into a game of pool against he and Adrian and Astoria was sitting perched on the love seat across from them with Lyra and Hannah, flipping through some kind of Picture book.

 

At their entrance, everyone’s eyes turned to the brunette and redhead, “Last to arrive, that’s not like you, Granger.”

 

Hermione scoffed, “Sod off, Theo.”

 

The wizard grinned, throwing his drink back.

 

“What were you all discussing?” Ginny asked shyly.

 

Blaise snorted and Daphne grinned as she leant over the table to line up her shot, Blaise shot her a flirtatious grin, “no discussion at all Red, just Pansy nagging, as usual.”

 

She frowned, “About what?”

 

“No.”

 

Ginny frowned and Hermione spun around, looking at Draco, raising a brow, “No?”

 

He growled, “We’re _not_ _going_.”

 

Hermione felt her lips fall into a thin line as she involuntarily stomped her foot in a spike of anger, “I _need_ that unicorn blood Draco! Marseilles isn’t a large enough hub to carry that kind of ingredient in its apothocaries. We _need_ to go to Djonn, Draco!”

 

“And we will.”

 

She blinked, “Come again?”

 

Pansy slid off of the piano and stalked forward, stepping into Hermione’s space and taking a hold of her shoulders, giving her a shake, “ _Paris_ , Granger. I want to go to _Paris_.”

 

“I said no.”

 

Hermione’s eyes glazed over as she thought of Paris, she’d been born in Paris. Two months premature, her parents had wanted a mini break and got a baby instead. She’d spent every summer in Paris with her parents since she could remember. Before coming south to sail, her father would take them to cathedrals and museums and libraries, the most beautiful places and art she ever hope to find.

 

Head tilting to the side, she let out a breathy whisper, “Paris?”

 

There was a loud groan over her shoulder, but recognising an opening, Pansy switched tactics, “Yes Granger, _Paris_. Don’t you want to go to Paris?”

 

Hermione didn’t notice but she was already nodding along, “Imagine it Granger, the Eiffel Tower, rue de mystéres, Le palais!”

 

She tilted her head, “ _c’est_ _quoi?”_

 

She faintly heard Draco’s growl and Pansy frowned, “ _Wizarding_ Paris Granger! Get with the spellwork, I’m trying to get your bloody vote!”

 

“I’ve already said, we’re not voting.” Draco intoned.

 

Pansy sneered, rounding on Draco and crossing her arms, “Who made you king? This is an oligarchy not a monarchy!”

 

Draco sneered, “We’re going to Djonn, and that’s final.”

 

Hermione frowned, but it was Ginny who voiced her thoughts, “Why can’t we go to Paris?”

 

All eyes turned to Ginny who began blushing furiously, Hermione glanced back at Draco, the glacial stare he was giving Ginny would petrify a lesser person. She was about to scold him when she noticed Theo hunched over and murmuring, wand pointed at his open palm. Frowning she brought her attention back to Draco, “Don’t look at her like that!” She snapped, “It’s a simple question Draco.”

 

She could see he was fuming on the inside, outside he was the picture of tranquility, giving her a slow blink before responding, “Death Eaters have been known to frequent Paris, it would not be wise to tempt fate, as it were.”

 

“They pop up in Djonn, just as often as they do Paris.” Theo murmured.

 

Draco’s head swivelled slowly around to stare Theo down, the wizard in question was staring into his drink when he looked up and noticed. Theo rolled his eyes looking back to his drink and murmuring, “Find a new expression, Draco.”

 

Beyond anyone’s eye, Theo had flicked his wand and a thick bright layer of clown makeup covered Draco’s face, even with his blank expression. White faced, his mouth was pulled into a huge grin, eyes decorated in a bright purple and green, with pinked cheeks.

 

The room was completely silent but for the muffled chuckles of Fred, holding his fist to his mouth, the girls all looked on wide eyed, Hermione herself was terrorfied by the image in front of her. At that, Draco’s head snapped around to stare her down intently. It was a trickle at first, building in her throat, begging to slip out.

Blaise, who had been thus far occupied with his game of pool walked over to the bar to pour himself a drink, unknowingly, he looked up and opened his mouth to say something when a loud crash of glass shattering on stone rang out through the room, everyone immediately looking to Blaise who recoiled as he gaped at Draco, “ _Salazar_ , that is _horrifying_.”

 

The dramatically arched brow on his comically cartoon looking face sent her over the edge and Hermione bent at the waist, clutching her stomach as peels of laughter brought her to her kneees.

 

Similarly to her left, Ginny was suffering much the same fate, giving into her laughter just seconds lAyer, unable to hold it in.

 

The Slytherins chuckled good naturedly, whilst Draco summoned a mirror, looking at his brightly coloured face he scowled, scourgyfing his face and banishing the mirror, and rounding that glacial stare back on Theo.

 

The wizard in question was drinking from his tumbler, grinning cheekily as he side eyed Draco, “Come on mate, take a joke.”

 

Seconds later Theo dropped to the floor with a loud thump and shattering glass, wide eyed, stiff as a board and covered in whiskey.


	139. Chapter 139

**THEO**

 

“Here, I’ve added a couple more ingredients to the list. Don’t forget the boomslang, it’s important, and don’t cheap out on the griffin feathers, I want the _gold_ ones, Draco.”

 

His head was pounding, Pansy has been quick to realise her path to success was through Hermione. She’d whispered of magical Paris in her ear relentlessly until she caved. Hermione had stood and demanded a vote, unifying the women in the den. Once in effect, it wasn’t hard to see where it would go. With two votes for Djonn and nine votes for Paris, they were heading for the city of lights.

 

“You’ll get what you’re given, if it wasn’t for you, all of us might have been able to go, we’d be headed to Djonn and you’d be able to pick them out for yourself.”

 

Theo grinned, “Who am I to deny the ladies? They want some entertainment Draco, they’re bored. You’ll all be glamoured, I don’t see what the issue is.”

 

Draco growled, “You know as well as I do, this is just asking for trouble.”

 

Theo scoffed, “Do you really think Death Eaters have got the time to prowl magical alleys out of country, on the off chance they’ll recognise some fugitives? Not fucking likely, Draco.”

 

Draco slammed his hands on the bench rattling the simmering coudlron in front of him, “There’s every chance there will be _someone_ there.”

 

Theo brought his hands to Draco shoulders, “Mate, no matter where you go, there’s always going to be risk involved, no matter what you try and do to prevent it. We can’t stop living because of ifs and maybes, it’s only three days. Make the most of it, be _young_ , have some fun.”

 

Draco gave him a sour look.

 

“Draco, you’ve taken every precaution known to wIzard, and then some to keep her safe. Let yourself enjoy the fruits of your labours, yeah?”

 

Draco sighed, shoulders dropping as he looked off to the side, “What if I don’t know how?”

 

Theo frowned, “What do you mean?”

 

Draco grimaced, ”I don’t know how to do normal.” His eyes flickered to Theo and away again, “I don’t think I’ve ever had a normal anything, Theo.”

 

Theo examines his long time friend with surprised eyes, “Draco, you were always a little stiff, but you never had any trouble enjoying life.”

 

Draco scrunched his eyes, shaking his head, “I don’t know, it’s all so distorted. Those memories, you know what he did.”

 

Theo leant back, looking Draco over from head to toe, “What aren’t you telling me?”

 

The blonde swallowed, whispering with unseeing eyes, “He took them Theo, took them and made them all ugly. I can’t bare to think about it.”

 

Theo blinked, “Draco, why haven’t you said anything? You know I could’ve-“

 

“I don’t need help, Theo!”

 

Theo clucked his tongue, “That’s not how it works mate, you take the good with the bad. I know it’s hard, but forgetting?” He shook his head, “That’s losing who you are, and that’s not you. You’re a fighter Draco, so fight.”

 

Draco frowned, looking around, panicked almost, like he was seeing doors closing before his very eyes, Theo didn’t know what to make of it, “Draco, don’t let them win. They already took so fucking much from us, don’t let them take her from you, too.”

 

**Author's Note:**

> Review! xo


End file.
